Never Expected Much
by Arynna
Summary: Taking up the journey of a trainer was never her dream, it was her duty. And yet slowly, she realizes that everything she thought she ever wanted does not truly come with success. girl!Ash. Eventual pairing with Gary. HIATUS - BEING REWRITTEN
1. Prologue

Everything in life happens for a reason . . .

No. That's not right.

Life _itself _is a reason for everything and anything to happen. It seems simple enough. For me, it should have been simple. Problem is life never plays fair. 'Cause why listen to reason when you don't have to?

* * *

.

.

* * *

I was four when I saw my first pokemon. It was a wonderful little thing. Dad said it was a Nidoran, a girl one. He found it while he was out by the lake fishing. It seemed scared and lost so he figured someone out there must be missing their friend.

I fell in love with pokemon from that point on. It was not just the fact that Ranran's (my nickname for Nidoran) eyes shone with understanding whenever I talked, but having her around for those few days made me forget about my loneliness. It's tough being an only child. That was the one time I ever had company at home besides my parents.

Of course, I knew Ranran couldn't stay forever. Mom had the decency to make sure I understood that. She would softly remind me every time she tucked us into bed. Ranran really liked sleeping beside me, all safe and sound beneath the covers. She also loved apples. Everyday I got to know something new about her. How her left ear twitches when she's happy. Or that she's only ticklish at the neck. By the end of the first week, she was as close as family.

It was a Tuesday, a month after Dad found Ranran, when that dreaded phone call came. Ranran's family had picked up on our flyers. They offered to come by to collect her but Dad, being the thoughtful person he was, told them he would her off instead.

"It's no trouble at all." He said kindly, all the while staring at my devastated face.

The pain of losing a friend cannot compare to losing your very first friend. That's just what happened. I knew Ranran wasn't mine, but a big hopeful part of me had wished silently every night that she was. I wished she stayed with us forever.

Dear old Dad knew how I felt; he knew how hard it was for me, so his way of making me feel better was to ask if I wanted to come along to send Ranran off. It was the worst possible solution ever. No way was I going to watch another family get Ranran. It wasn't fair. If they were careless enough to lose her in the first place, then they didn't deserve her. They'd never deserve her.

Bottom line was I declined Dad's offer, screaming about how much I hated him for putting up those stupid flyers in the first place, and ran to my room to weep like the naive four-year-old girl I was. Dad came up a while later. He stood outside my room, turning the knob and asking me to open up. I ignored him. He probably stood there for ten minutes, though it felt like hours. The last thing I saw was his shadow moving away from under the door before sleep took over.

When I came down the next morning, I felt weird. Not my-tummy-is-a-little-rumbly weird. You know when you have a gut feeling that something's wrong but you just didn't know what? Yeah, that kind of weird.

There wasn't any breakfast on the table. In my household, that's practically a sign of the apocalypse. There was no smell of coffee. No clattering of plates and pans. No sigh whatsoever of anyone ever being in the kitchen. I got more than a little spooked. I immediately when to check on my parent's room. I scrambled up the stairs in my pink princess nightgown and proceeded to bang my fists on their door.

No reply. Nothing.

By then I was really scared. At the time, I got the notion that my parents wanted to punish me for treating Dad the way I did yesterday. Nobody loved a rude, disrespecting daughter. They probably left a note somewhere saying how much they hated me and didn't want to see me anymore.

It's funny the conclusions kids come to.

All of a sudden, I heard something coming from the bathroom.

I know, I know. Little girl—home alone—hears funny noises. I should have run straight to the neighbor's right there and then. Instead, wide-eyed and curious, I tiptoed over to the door. It was half ajar. I could hear the noise clearer now. It was somebody crying. A ghost? A monster? No, it was my mother, dressed in her pajamas, auburn hair a mess, bawling her eyes out in the bathtub. There wasn't any water but I was surprised her tears hadn't filled it up yet.

Up till then, I thought the only time grown-ups cried was in the movies. You know, since it's fake and all. But this was _very _real.

I'd like to say that my first instinct was to slowly back out of the room but the truth is I never had much of an instinct to begin with. Instead I just stood there, listening to my mother's painful cries. And let me tell you, I may have just been a kid at the time but I figured having a rusty nail jammed into my heart inch by inch would have been better than enduring that.

Before I knew it, I started to bawl too. I didn't even know why. I guess it was just the sight that had shocked me and my adolescent mind into commotion. Only then did Mom realize she wasn't alone. She jumped a good five feet into the air.

"Ashley!" She stopped crying for a few moments, probably trying think of one of those parents' excuses to calm me down with but never got the time to come up anything. The waterworks came pouring out again. "Come here, honey . . ."

I ran over and crawled into the tub with her.

"W-why are you crying, Mommy?" I choked as she hugged me tight.

She gave me a good long look through flooded eyes, and I instantly regretted asking. I cried harder than I ever did in my life as my mom told me everything. She never hesitated, not even when she needed to breath in between sobs.

A police officer had come by very early in the morning with the news. It was quite stormy the night before. The roads were slippery and the winds were terror. While on his way to deliver Ranran, Dad lost control of the steering as he tried to swerve a sharp bend. The car went straight through the barrier and down into the ravines below. He told Mom that the impact alone must have already been enough to kill Dad, long before the car burst into flames. Officers sure know how to be reassuring.

A few days later, I was attending my first funeral. There was no casket. Dad was cremated and his ashes scattered in that lake he loved so much. The lake where he brought to me Ranran. They never found any other body in the car but they figured that there was no way for a small pokemon to have survived that crash. Ranran was simply lost.

* * *

.

.

* * *

Everything in life happens for a reason. There's no special meaning behind it. There's no moral in the end of every story. There's no lesson to be learned after every mistake. Stuff just happens. That's all it is.

That's probably the only thing I can really count on.


	2. 1: A Journey Worth Taking

Chapter 1: A Journey Worth Taking

--

With the rise of the sun, came the cock-crow symphony of the Dodrio, stirring sleepy Pallet Town back into life. Windows were being let open, porches were being swept, neighbors greeted one another as they ventured out to collect the paper and Billy, the local handsome, hard-bodied milkman, tipped his hat to the housewives and daughters who readily open their doors to greet him before leaving with a swoon-worthy smile and a tray of empty bottles in hand.

Overall, it seemed like the picture of a perfect neighborhood where nothing extraordinary ever happens.

Not in that part of town at least.

Near the outer edges of the settlement, east of the Pokémon Research Laboratory, sat the Ketchum's residence. It was a big day for the family. Today young Ashley Ketchum was to begin her life as an official Pokémon trainer.

Mrs. Ketchum has been looking forward to this occasion ever since Ashley turned ten last winter. Now here she was, feeling like what any doting mother should be feeling during this coming-of-age moment: bravely holding back tears after having just made the breakfast of her life. For on the dining table was a spread that could overwhelm even the most famish hyperactive teen: eggs, sunny-side up with a generous helping of beans and bacons, a plate of homemade muffins, a jug of freshly squeezed orange juice, oatmeal raisin cookies, strawberry jam buns, a steaming pot of yam porridge and of course, Delia's trademark blueberry pancakes.

All she needed now was someone who would actually _eat_ the food.

She glanced at the clock above the fireplace. 7.56 a.m. Any minute now, the Golden Girl would be bouncing down those stairs, eager and ready to kick start her awaiting adventure. Mrs. Ketchum took a seat by the table as she waited, her head already filled with possible senarios of tearful reunion which of course, would conclude with a celebratory parade in honor of Ashley's return as a town heroine. It's a bit of a long shot but every parent can dream, can't they?

By the time she snapped out of her stupor, Delia realized it was already a quarter past eight and still no Ashley.

_That girl is going to be late!_ she thought in horror.

Sweeping to her feet, she started up the stairs towards her daughter's bedroom.

"Ashley?" she knocked softly on the door. "Ashley, honey, are you still asleep?" A few seconds passed before Mrs. Ketchum decided to turn the knob, "I'm coming in."

To her left, a large cabinet filled to the brim with all sorts of Pokémon merchandize greeted her as she stepped in. In the upper right corner of the room was a study table, its surface overcrowded with books and magazines where Ashley was known to spend hours just pouring over everything. Her outfit for today, which Delia herself had picked out the night before, was draped tenderly over the desk chair. The older woman eyed her daughter's messy room wearily, thinking about all the tidying up she would have do later.

Quietly, she made her way over to the bed, careful not to step on any stuffed toys or discarded clothes.

There's a window just above where Ashley slept, its view overlooking the Research Lab and the wonders that stretched out beyond Pallet Town. Ashley loved the scenery. It was the whole reason why she wanted this particular room in the first place. Ashley told Mrs. Ketchum once that when she looked out the window before falling asleep, it was as if she was falling asleep beneath the starry sky.

"Ashley . . ."

Mrs. Ketchum took a tiny place by the edge of the bed, staring fondly at the sleeping lump beside her. _Poor baby_, she thought. Last night's leaving party must had really worn her out. No wonder the girl was still sound asleep. Mrs. Ketchum smiled, reaching over to pull down the covers . . .

"C'mon honey, it's time to wake up."

. . . only to find a bunch of pillows underneath.

A terrifying shriek erupted, loud enough to breach the canopies of the Viridian Forest.

Professor Oak, in his surprise, spilled coffee all over his latest study. The town's Dodrio fell off its fence with an unceremonious squawk right in front of a speeding milk van whose hunky driver swerved in his effort to avoid the bird and crashed into a trash can, resulting in a loss of bottles which would dock a good twenty percent out of his month's pay. A few doors down, Mr. and Mrs. Dale both looked up startled from their breakfast.

Mrs. Dale cursed, "Those darned Ketchums! Always starting the day off with a ruckus. I told you we should have moved in with my sister. I told you! Retirement would have been a wonder in Fuchsia. But nooo, instead, you wanted to settle in the countryside. This is all your doing, Robert Dale. Staying with you will be the death of me. Why, I should have packed my bags years ago and married Jimmy Beacons! Oh if my dear, dead mother could see me now. Wasting away in squalor . . . "

Mr. Dale, having grown a useful trait for blocking out his wife's complaints, resumed buttering his toast with a weary sigh.

Meanwhile, somewhere not too far away, a pair of blue eyes fluttered open.

* * *

High, high up in the Northern peaks, swell a source supplied from underground reserves, the result of thousand of years worth of rain and percolation. It runs through falls and rapids, grinding down any obstruction, tearing through any hindrance to shape its way. The slope is steep, its speed is deadly. The roar of the river alone has warned even the most vicious predator not to cross its path.

As the water descends, the land begins to smoothen. The gradient becomes gentle. The river loses its tenacious temper and its bellow subsides. It now travels through basins where small farming settlements are found. The livelihood of many depends on it. Human innovation cuts away its natural path and shifts its flow into tiny canals and passages of the rice fields. The load it brings from the mountains is useful and the loss of speed forces the weight to settle.

Further downhill, it trudges on. The river has arrived at the nadir. Lay out before it is the final stretch of its journey: an open spread of land. Here the air is fresh, the grass is soft and the surrounding is calm. Such a deep contrast to the harsh, rocky terrain of its origin. A lake, right smack in the middle of the meadow, is where the once mighty river (having been reduced to a trickling stream) will empty into.

The lake exists beneath the shade of an ancient maple. A marvelous body of water where Pokémon and people alike have been known to enjoy its presence. The area around it is a renowned camping spot. It is not unusual to see up to a dozen tents pitched on any given day. Hikers and explorers are always passing through on their way to the mountains. However, on this particular morning, only a lone form, snuggled nicely in a warm sleeping bag, lay by the water's edge.

* * *

Ashley Ketchum shot up suddenly, awake and alert, having been roused by a mysterious force. With a sort of cautiousness, she inspected her surrounding as if expecting someone, or something, to pop out of nowhere and jump her. Strange. Everything was as she remembered it to be after falling asleep on the grassy ground. The maple tree was still standing, the lake still had water in it, her sleeping bag had not been stolen . . . Then why couldn't she shake the feeling that she just heard her mother calling out to her?

It was odd indeed.

Ashley wiggled herself free of her sleeping bag, got to her feet and lifted her hands over her head into a glorious stretch, taking in a deep breath. Above her, the leaves swayed in tune with the light wind. Her skin tingled at the coolness.

"Ahh . . ." she sighed. Nothing felt better than the mornings. Blue met blue as her eyes glazed over the water's stagnant surface. A small smile broke across her face and she whispered to into the breeze, "Morning, Dad."

* * *

It was close to ten when Delia heard the front door open. There were soft footsteps coming through the hallway and then she watched out of the corner of her eye as her daughter stepped into the dining room, a backpack perched on her shoulder. Her clothes were smeared with grass stains and she smelled suspiciously of dirt and sweat.

"Hey, Mo—," Ashley froze. Her heart leaped into her throat at the sight of the breakfast laid out, cold and untouched, something she had not expected. It must have taken her mother ages to prepare everything. All for her. All for this rotten day. She steeled herself before facing her mother, head hung low in guilt. Mrs. Ketchum had not moved. She sat motionless by the table, staring blankly at a pile of pancakes.

"Mom . . ." Ashley started feebly. "I can explain."

Finally, Delia turned her daughter's way and Ashley felt coldness sweep over her. Mrs. Ketchum had been crying.

"Oh, Mom." Dropping the backpack, she rushed over and knelt beside her mother. The threat of her own tears stung the back of her eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, sorry, sorry."

Mrs. Ketchum closed her eyes, her lips quivering as she tried weakly to shake her head. It was no use. She placed a hand on the table to steady herself. She couldn't open her mouth to reply. She couldn't tell her own daughter that she was actually thinking the day she got news of her husband's death. How the impact of the sudden tragedy had left her with an unshakable paranoia.

To lose a loved one so suddenly, without warning, it robs a person of their trust in life.

And when she saw that empty bed . . . well.

"You should have left a note." Ashley looked up to see her mother's pained but smiling face. Gently, Mrs. Ketchum cupped her chin. "I was just worried. That's all. I—I'm glad you're okay." _You have grown up so fine_, she couldn't help thinking proudly, taking in Ashley's thick brown tresses and her vibrant blue eyes. In a quieter voice, she asked, "Where were you?"

Ashley was silent for a moment. She thought about it and decided there was no point in lying. "I was with Daddy."

Mrs. Ketchum went stiff. "The lake?"

"I wanted . . . to tell him about today. I was planning on coming home sooner but I didn't get up in time. I didn't want to worry you, Mom. I knew you wouldn't let me go so I snuck out."

"And _when _exactly did you 'snuck' out?"

"A little before dawn." By a little, Ashley really meant four hours beforehand but Mrs. Ketchum didn't need to know that.

The older woman seemed to deliberate, and then, gathering herself, she sighed. "You could have just told me." She said it so softly Ashley figured it was directed to herself. "Go on, honey. Go upstairs and freshen up. It's your special day and I don't want you to be anymore late than—"

A tight hug from her daughter cut Delia off. She blinked in shock, before letting out a small laugh. When Ashley pulled away, there was no hiding her misty eyes. "You just wait, Mom. One of these days I'll make you proud. Dad too. I'll make both of you proud. Promise." And with that she ran out of the room. Mrs. Ketchum listened to the _thump_-_thump_-_thump _as Ashley raced up the stairs.

Delia had to shake her head in disagreement. _You already have_.

* * *

"Gone? What'd you mean gone?" Ashley looked exasperated.

"I mean, you're too late. I'm sorry, Ashley. If you had been here sooner things would be different but due to current circumstances I'm afraid there's nothing I can do. I'm sorry."

A growing fear bubbled its way up Ashley's spine. Her mouth was dry, her heart was racing; and it had nothing to do with all the running she did to get here.

"Please, _please_ Professor. You gotta' have something. _Anything_. I can't . . . I can't go back and tell my mom I have to wait another year just 'cause I was _late_. She's miserable as it is 'cause of me. I mean, I'll take anything you have." She stared beseechingly at the Professor, hands held in a prayer. "Please?"

"Um, err, well . . ."

Dear Lord, what have the years done to him? Back in the good, old days, when he was still in the playing field, he could take on a school of wild Gyarados without so much as a single blink and now . . . Now the pleading face of a child is enough to make his heart go soft.

A defeated sigh sounded from his lips. "Well I do have one left—,"

"Great!" Ashley intercepted with a big relieved shout. "I'll take it!"

"Now, hold on a minute. I'm telling you, you don't know the full deal you're getting yourself into here. This particular Pokémon was never meant to be given away. Well, not as a starter. And definitely not for the less experienced. I would feel more at ease if you would take it into consideration that this is no light matter. And I'm speaking objectively when I say that a rookie such as yourself will no doubt find it more than a little difficult to handle."

"Don't care." Ashley replied flatly. There it was: that stubborn, steely glint in her eyes and the Professor knew there was no point in prolonging a hopeless argument.

He sighed again. Why couldn't have age been more kind to him, he wondered. "Alright then. I'll get you your Pokémon."

It was only after the initial excitement of not needing to disappoint her mother and finally being able to start her journey pass did Ashley realized she never even bothered to ask what kind of Pokémon she was getting. A slight heat grazed her cheek at her own silliness. She opened her mouth to ask, but thought better of it when she saw the Professor returning with a Pokéball in hand.

"Here we are," he said, plopping it into Ashley's outstretched palm. "Congratulations, now that you have your first Pokémon, you are officially a Pokémon trainer."

"Oh," echoed Ashley. "Huh. I don't feel any different than I did a minute ago but okay." She examined the lightning bolt label on the Pokéball. "So . . . what exactly _is_ it? The Pokémon I mean."

"Just press the button there and,"—

A red ray of light emitted from the device cut the Professor off. As if with a will of it own, it directed itself right on top of the Professor's desk, morphing and molding to first form a pair of pointy ears, a long tail and a small body before turning solid, leaving behind a yellow, little critter.

"Kaaachu!"

"A Pikachu?" Ashley stared at the Pokémon, not sure if she should be pleased or not. It surely didn't _look_ impressive. "Oh, well." She sighed.

Pikachu turned to look at the two humans with a puzzled "Pi?" A surprised expression fell over its features as it gave the lab a curious onceover but that curiosity lasted only a few seconds. This was not its first venture into human territory and it showed its appreciation for it with a big yawn. All of a sudden, reaching that annoying itch behind its ear seemed far more interesting.

"Umm, what should I do now?" asked Ashley, watching as the Pikachu start to groom its tail.

Professor Oak shrugged. "I supposed now all you have to do it call it back and you're good to go. Oh wait! That's right. I almost forgot, I have a great favor to ask of you."

"Favor?"

"Yes, I asked Gary the same thing awhile ago."

"Oh, yeah, Gary," Ashley threw an inconspicuous glance at her Pikachu. "What was his starter by the way?"

"Ah, I can't tell you that. It's trainers' confidential." Professor Oak said brightly. "Anyway, where was I? Ah, yes. The favor. Recently I have perfected an invention known as the Pokédex." He rummaged through his drawers before coming up with that appeared to be a technological advanced red notebook. "Consider it as a regular Poké-encyclopedia if you will. It can collect and store information on all the Pokémons captured or encountered by the holder. What I want you to do is,"—

"Get to know every single Pokémon out there?"

"Precisely! Well, not necessarily _all_. Since you do have Gary to help fulfill his part."

Ashley scoffed. "I wouldn't count on that."

"What was that?"

"Nothing, nothing. So, that's it?"

Professor looked thoughtful for a moment. "Yes, I supposed that's about it. Ah, I also have some Pokéballs and potions to aid you in the meantime. Just until you reach the next town." Professor Oak stepped back to take a full good look at the would-be Pokémon Master in front of him. "I am sure your father is very proud of you. You're going to be an outstanding trainer, Ashley. I just know it."

"Thanks," mumbled Ashley.

"Why, I remembered my first steps into the great beyond as a trainer. All the wonders and excitement. The dangers and adventures! Ah, those were the days. The mere memories are enough to fill my old bones with m'irth again. Oh the sheer thrill of being young . . ."

"Right. Uh, Professor? Can I go now?"

"Hmm? Yes, of course, of course. I wish you the best of luck, Ashley. And don't forget your Pikachu."

"Oh, right." Ashley looked over and realized that the yellow mouse had made a nest out of the Professor's papers and was now snoozing peacefully in some Pikachu paradise. "Pikachu, return." The red light shot out again, this time to swallow the Pokémon back into its captivity. "Well, I'll be seeing you Professor."

Ashley rushed out of the room, only to return a second later, tackling Professor Oak in a big hug. She won't admit it but she was going to miss him. In fact, she was going to miss _everything_ about Pallet Town.

"Thank you," she said softly, before leaving for real.

Once out on the dirt road leading to the borders of town and beyond, Ashley sucked in a deep breathe and hitched her backpack higher. For some reason she couldn't quite comprehend, she found herself holding onto Pikachu's pokéball, perhaps for reassurance. To remind herself that she's not alone.

"Well, here goes,"—

"_Ashley_!"

Surprised, the girl spun around to see her mother rushing towards her, waving. She waited until Mrs. Ketchum caught up. "Whoa, Mom, are you okay?"

Delia fought hard to catch her breathe. "I wanted–_pant_–to make sure–_pant_–. . .before you left . . ." It took awhile before things came out normally. "I, I wanted to give you something; something I've been planning for some time now." Out of her apron pocket, she pulled out a thick, short rod-looking handle. It didn't look like much, but it made Ashley gasped all the same.

"Th-Thanks, Mom." Ashley eyes went wide. "I can't . . . Is it really what I think it is?"

"I had it modified in the shop." Mrs. Ketchum grinned. "It's better than ever now."

"No way. But, it's Dad's!"

"And he would be pleased to have it passed down to his daughter." Mrs. Ketchum insisted. "There wouldn't be any greater honor than that. Just take it, sweetie. You're doing him proud."

Ashley looked down before her mother could see her reddening eyes. "Okay," she replied meekly.

"Oh, come here, honey." Mrs. Ketchum pulled Ashley into a long embrace, savoring the last moments she'll have with her daughter. "Good luck out there. We'll be rooting for you."

As Ashley walked down that dirt road, she felt resolved, far more than she was this morning. She didn't look back at the retreating form of her mother or the Pokémon Lab or the distant mountains. She didn't spare a goodbye glance to the place she loved so much. Because this was not goodbye. She will not be gone forever.

Mrs. Ketchum choked down sobs at the sight of her baby walking away. She was so devastated that she didn't realize a presence joining her side.

"Now, now, Delia dear. No need for that. You'll see the girl again." Professor Oak piped in, a bit too brightly for Delia's current state of mind. The Professor stared out into the distance and sighed wistfully. "Ah, I remembered the good old days. The days when kids were taught by their parents to be _real_ trainers. There were a lot less tears, and a lot more whips."

* * *

**To be continued . . .**

* * *

Author's Notes:

Just a few things to clear up.

1) Ashley looks like Green or Leaf from the manga and game.

2) I am aware of how high the 'EW' factor is on the name Ashley but it's the closes thing to Ash. Deal with it :)

3) Lastly, thanks for reading :)


	3. 2: Lost Before Found

Chapter 2: Lost Before Found

--

Who knew that just five hours ago, our young aspiring trainer would fall trap to one of the most trivial, simple-minded blunder any green adventurer could possibly make: getting lost.

That's right. At the moment, Ashley Ketchum is fighting to find her way out of an unmarked forest with only the assistance of a too-outdated map. It wasn't really her fault though (and even if it was, she'd never own up anyway). Abandoning the well-paved path for this narrow dirt track seemed like a sensible decision at the time since she had the notion that it was some sort of secret shortcut to Viridian. Now she would count her blessings if she'd ever make it out at all.

The good news? She figured things couldn't get any crummier than this.

The bad? She was wrong.

Overhead, the sky was beginning to dim, turning an array of pallid colors as the sun dipped into the horizon. The woodland hum seemed to echo louder with the darkening of her surrounds. And with the looming approach of twilight teetering nearby, this little detour was looking more and more foolish on her part.

"Pika!"

Already jittery from slight paranoia, the girl couldn't help a small shriek as the pokéball exploded in her hand, releasing Pikachu. She didn't even realize she was clutching the device until then, probably having set it off by accident.

"Chaaa . . ."

Ashley watched as the mouse stretched and shook the stiffness out of its muscles from being cooped up for so long. She couldn't believed that she got scared by her own pokemon. Never mind that. She forgot she even _had _a pokemon. Though, at least now she felt slightly relieved. She may still be lost, scared and tired but she wasn't _alone_.

Pikachu proceeded to clean the fur on its back when Ashley stepped closer.

"Um, hey, there little guy." Ashley began awkwardly.

The mouse looked up and tilted its head to one side.

"You _are _a guy right?" She got a blank stare in return. "Uh . . . Okay, let's try it this way. Nod if you understand me."

She received a yawm instead.

"Close enough," the girl muttered. "My name is Ashley. Ashley Ketchum. I'm your trainer."

Tiny shoulders rose in what Ashley perceived to be a shrug. Pikachu was now smoothing down the ruffled patches on its belly.

"Alright then," she continued, forcing a smile. "You know, I read that trainers would sometimes give their pokemon their own special names. Kind of like a way to set them apart of the rest of their species. Sounds pretty cool doesn't it? I think we should give it a go. What do you say?"

Again, another shrug. The mouse barely paused in its grooming.

"Uh, okay, so . . . First things first, I guess, are you a girl? Or . . ."

There was no response. As if deciding on its own that the conversation was over, Pikachu propped down in a very human-like sitting position and closed its eyes, a small smile on its face. Ashley would have found this stunt amusing if she didn't feel as if she was being mocked. It was bad enough that the mouse didn't want to accept her extend of friendship, but now it didn't even wanted to spare her a glance.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that you don't really like me do you?"

Not bothering to even open its eyes, Pikachu shook its head with a carefree, "Kah. Chu."

Ashley snorted. "Well since we're being honest here, I'm not too fond of you either but like I said back at the professor's, I'm going with whatever I have and nothing's gonna stop me, especially not a stubborn little pokemon. It's you and me from here on, Mickey, whether you like it or not."

"Chu?"

"What? Don't like your new name? What about Minnie then?" Ashley smirked, knowing that it would get Pikachu going and she was right.

What she didn't know is Pikachu's cheeks lighting up. Sparks flew and not the way it does in love stories. A second later Ashley's lighting up herself.

She's been electrocuted once, when she was younger. Tommy Bolvero was going around the schoolyard shocking people with his toy taser. It was the typical type of gag hidden in his palm and anyone dumb enough to fall for his trick would jump like a light. Ashley, being the naive outcast that she was, looked up and thought that Tommy was being genuine when he said he wanted to be friends. She reached out her hand without a second thought. The next minute, she was crying like a baby while Tommy and his entourage jeered and laughed.

The memory was probably more painful than the shock. The taser only stung her palm and tickled her arm. It was nothing compared to an angry Pikachu's thundershock.

Something smelt suspiciously like cooked meat and burnt fabric. It took her fizzled brain awhile to realized that it was coming from her. The ground was starting to feel really cold, despite the fact that on the inside, she was burning. The last thing she was saw was a yellow, red-cheeked face. And then, blackness.

* * *

She was lying on something soft, a bed probably, though much softer than any mattresses she'd ever felt. It was more like a cloud with a sweet scent floating around in the breeze. Blueberry pancakes. Just the type she could always expect coming from the kitchen on Tuesday mornings. There was a cool, tender hand on her forehead. She didn't look but she knew who it was. The hushed voice that followed confirmed it. _Shh_, it seemed to be saying. So kindly, like an angel.

_Dad_.

His warm smile appeared in her head. She wanted to jump up and throw her arms around him. She wanted to kiss him on the cheeks like she would when she was little and sit on his lap while she told him about her day. She wanted to look into his gentle blue eyes, so similar to her own, and let him know just how much she missed him. More importantly, she wanted to say she was sorry; sorry about . . . well, everything.

Her eyes burst open, and what greeted her was indescribable disappointment.

She was lying on the ground, grass tickling her nose. Night must have fallen long ago for the moon was high above her head, shining down on the treetops and her tear-stained cheeks.

No cloud mattress. No pancakes.

No good ol' Dad.

Just an old, resurfaced scar and a dull ache that seemed embedded in her bones.

"Pikapi!"

Ashley groaned. She shut her eyes tight and attempted to fall back into obliviousness as recent recollection took over. She should be thankful, she supposed. But if breathing meant having to deal with that _thing_, then she's better off out cold. She wanted to yell: "Leave me alone!" except it hurt too much to speak. It felt as though she swallowed sandpaper. So instead, she turned her back to the pokemon while gritting her teeth in agony. _Go away_, she prayed. _Just go away and leave me alone_.

A not-too-subtle nudge at the girl's side told her that Pikachu had other plans. She soon felt tiny hands, or more like paws, tugging at her arm. Very insistent tugs which only got worst the longer she ignored it. She blindly swatted it away but then the mouse would simply shift its hold and tug on some other part of her body like her leg or her foot or even her nose.

"What do you want now?" Ashley croaked.

"Pika. Pi, Pikachu."

The girl turned over again and tried flattening herself further against the forest floor. She heard a frustrated "Cha." behind but other than that the tugging had stopped. She would have sighed in relief, thinking the mouse had finally gotten the right idea, but her breathe was cut short when a can of water was dumped down her neck. That certainly got the girl energized. Pikachu scrambled out of the way as Ashley furiously pushed herself up.

"What do you think you're doing!" Ashley demanded. Her eyes weren't fully focused but at least the moonlight allowed her to see exactly where Pikachu was. The mouse had the strap of her backpack in its mouth and her fallen hat on its head.

An alarm suddenly went off for Ashley. "Where do you think you're going with my stuff?"

The moment it saw the girl take to her feet, Pikachu started towards the trees. For a ten-year old, Ashley was notably more athletic than other kids her age but still incomparable to a speeding mouse on a mission. Not to mention that she had spots dancing in front of her eyes and running through a forest in the dark is not very advisable. Shouting empty threats like a maniac didn't help much either. Every now and then she would just catch sight of the tip of its tail before the Pokemon vanished between another pile of bushes.

"Come back!" the girl cried.

Unfortunately, as she stumbled around a particularly thick trunk, the front of her sneaker caught a perturbed root. Before she knew it she pitched forward and fell, only to be forced into motion by a downhill slope. Ashley feverishly tried to grab hold onto something as she rolled downward not no success. She heard herself scream. And then a thump. The girl tumbled right out of the line of trees and fell smack onto her face. Only when the dizziness cleared did she become aware of her new surroundings and the presence of a familiar sound. The sound of a flowing river.

She struggled onto her elbows, grunting in effort.

"Pika, pika."

Ashley looked up and wonders of wonders, there was her Pokemon, standing just in front of her, a few feet away from the river's edge. "Pikachu." It was pointing eagerly at something north of the course.

"Wha-"

Before she could say anything, the girl felt a pair of paw grabbed her by the cheeks and turned her towards the direction. Surprised, her first thought was to pull away but then something more interesting caught her attention in the distance. Her eyes widened.

"Is that . . ."

"Pi!"

She had to squint but it was certain that what she saw were the blinking lights of a not-too faraway town.

Ashley stared in silence. After a while, she decided to sit up to get a better look but a sharp pain stopped her. "God . . . My head," she groaned. "It's like it's gonna split open." It wasn't just that, everything else seemed to hurt too; every muscle, bone and fiber in her body. Even more so now since she was wide awake and alert.

"Pikapi," muttered Pikachu, almost sadly.

When a dazed pair of blue eyes finally fell on it, the mouse stiffened and braced itself for the worst. But the worst never came.

"Well, thanks to you, I guess we're not lost anymore huh."

That was certainly the last thing it expected. Where's the yelling? Pikachu's baffled face seemed to ask. No screaming? No outburst?

"Water." Ashley coughed. "I need water."

Pikachu didn't need to be told twice. It clawed around inside the backpack it had 'stolen' from Ashley, got the necessary bottle in its mouth and hurried back to the girl. Ashley took it with a mumbled thanks. She gulped down the content in one go. Pikachu shied away as it watched her drink, remembering how it had used the water earlier to get Ashley's attention. Even now it could see that the back of the girl's shirt was still wet. That gave the mouse an idea. It dug around the bag again until it found a nice, dry article of clothing.

It dropped it at Ashley's feet. The mouse sat back, pleased with itself as Ashley picked it up. "Uh," Ashley started, examining the one-piece swimsuit. "You want me to wear this to sleep?"

"Pi." It replied happily, nuzzling the girl's palm.

Suddenly, Ashley frowned, snapping back her hand. "Okay, that's it. Cut it out." Pikachu looked up, puzzled. "I know what you're up to, you know. That's right. My brain may be permanently fried but I'm not stupid. You're little nice act isn't going to work on me. If you think I'm gonna forget about just now and let everything go," she cringed as a pain shot through her ribs. "Then you are sorely mistaken."

Pikachu feigned innocence for a few more seconds, before giving in with a defeated shrug, though it did not seem all that bothered by it. It had given its best try. It plopped onto the ground and immediately began settling down for sleep.

_Now that's the Pikachu I know_, thought the girl.

Ashley grabbed her backpack, stuffed the swimsuit back in and rooted around for some real clothes. Once she was done, she rolled out the sleeping bag and crawled in, lying back with a well-deserved sigh. Despite all the mishaps and near-disasters of today, she couldn't help a smile as she looked back on the start of her journey. It wasn't turning out like she thought it would be but at least one thing was sure, it was in no way boring. It was already starting to feel like a bona fide adventure filled with pains and aches and a wayward companion; everything that came with being a Pokemon Master in training most probably.

"Still," she half-whispered to the now snoozing Pikachu. Her eyelids felt heavy and the stars above were beginning to merge into the black velvet sky. "If tomorrow is _anything _like today, don't wake me up."

* * *

Ashley Ketchum soon fell asleep to far-fetched dreams of success and celebration. But if you think her troubles end with bedtime, think again. Out of the trees, a small form emerges and stalks across the grassy stretch over to the slumbering duo. Its footsteps are silent enough to walk pass the attentive ears of a Pikachu without a single worry. It glances at the girl but she does not interest it. There is only one thing that has caught its attention. With deft swipes, it opens the backpack in no time, barely making a single noise. The contents spill out but it is not greedy. It takes what it wants and as quickly as it appeared, the figure fades back into the shadows.

It would be hours before neither Pokemon or human will notice the crime scene. In the meantime, let them enjoy their peace in sleep. We all know how fleeting that can be.

* * *

**To be continued . . .**


	4. 3: Pikachu & The Weedstalk

Chapter 3: Pikachu & The Weedstalk

--

Apples, pears, grapes, oranges, bananas, plums, cherries, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, pumpkins . . .

Pikachu was in paradise. Wherever it turned there was either a tree, vine, bush or patch bearing every kind of fruit it had ever known in its lifetime. Among the sea of flourishing colors, the grass was a golden shade of wheat and the sky above a soft blue streaked with pinks and purples. The smell that hung in the air was beyond divine. Best of all, Pikachu had the entire place to itself.

Without another thought, the mouse pounced, barely feeling the ground beneath its feet. Past dozens of trees and fallen fruit it went, taking in the glorious sight with open awe and excitement, wondering which it should tackle first. It wanted _everything_! Even if it stuffed itself to combustion that didn't matter because at least it knew it would die happy. If it wasn't already dead that is.

A small pinkish sphere caught its attention. Just between two berry patches, lying with an innocent rosy gleam was Pikachu's ultimate favorite. The most sweetest nectarine flesh of them all.

It gave out a joyous "Cha!" and in two big leaps, soon had the delicious peach in its clutches. Pikachu took a big whiff. A pleasing shiver erupted. It stared at the fruit almost lovingly before slowly bringing to its mouth. Three inches to go 'til the first bite. Two inches. One . . .

An overhead branch snapped and out fell a watermelon, landing right on Pikachu's head.

"Pikaaaa!" The mouse cried out, dropping the fruit.

Like a popped balloon, the peach vanished. The trees soon followed, as if a rabid mole rat was pulling them back into the ground until nothing remained but darkness and the sound of a river behind it. Through stingy tears, Pikachu opened its eyes and was greeted by the strong, morning light. The crown of its head was throbbing, as if someone just came around and punched it into consciousness. Coincidentally enough, it looked up to see the angry, twisted face of its trainer staring down at it with unmasked distaste. Ashley's arms were flattened against her sides, one hand curled into a fist, the other held her backpack.

"You . . ." she said through gritted teeth.

Pikachu jumped out of the way just in time to avoid the large bag as it hit the ground. It was fully awake now, and downright furious at the sudden assault. "Pikachu!" Its cheeks crackled threateningly but Ashley did not seem fazed this time around.

"I'll give you one chance to tell me the truth - just _one_!" she held up a finger. "And don't you _dare _play dumb with me. 'Fess up, where did all the food go!"

"Pi, pikachu!"

"You were nearest to the bag! It has to be you! So where is it? Where's the food!"

What food? Pikachu wanted to yell back at her. It certainly knew nothing about any food (unless you count its delicious dream) or the nature of Ashley's accusation. It decided that the girl must have lost it. Either that or the aftermath of yesterday's shock was still affecting her brain. She was as coherent as a drunk, thrashing Nidoqueen.

"Well!" Ashley demanded.

It was like seeing a tiny explosion go off. The girl was shaking with anger. Pikachu expected an explosion at any moment. However, something strange happened instead. The explosion hit a dead fuse and a crack started to show. The angry countenance wavered, breaking. The girl slummed onto the ground, buried her face in her knees and, much to the mouse's surprise, began to sob. And not just little sobs, but big fat, globs of tears accompanied by loud wailing.

"I-It's all go-gone! Everything! And I'm so, so hungry! I-I didn't even eat last nigh-night!"

Pikachu decided that its trainer was a first class crazy. Any pity it felt at her tears quickly evaporated and soon all it felt was a desperate need to shut her up. Because believe it or not, the girl was _loud_. Her wails could wake a Snorlax. Pikachu knew it had to do _something_ before it went deaf.

In the midst of her plight, Ashley failed to notice the yellow Pokemon crawling up to her and, in a big act of awkwardness, started to pat the girl on the back in what seemed to be its best comforting manner. It worked, somewhat. The girl finally looked up, red-eyed and teary.

"What?" she muttered.

"Pika . . ." a weary Pikachu whined. All the mouse wanted was a quiet morning.

Surprisingly, Ashley misunderstood and shooed Pikachu off of her. "It's too-_hic_-late for apologie-_hic_-es now." A loud grumble from her stomach cut her off and she groaned. Pikachu braced itself, fearing that the waterworks were going to be back on full-force. However, Ashley pursed her lips, letting out only a couple of sobs and hiccups. She looked Pikachu in the eyes and said, "I hope you're happy."

Pikachu returned the stare with a flat look of its own. "Pi." It deadpanned.

Slowly, all the while keeping one eye on its trainer, Pikachu sniffed through the backpack, just to make sure it wasn't getting its tail pulled. Sure enough, no food. No wrapped up sandwiches, no dried meats or any other stuff that had been there the night before. And yet the only scent it could pick up on was its own and Ashley's. That was very, _very _odd. For Pikachu at least.

"You believe me now?" Angry tears began to well up again. "Well what am I supposed to do? Starve?"

Pikachu shrugged.

"I know what _you_'re gonna do though. You're gonna make up for this. You gonna get back in that forest, and you're gonna find me breakfast."

Pikachu shook its head. A definite 'no way'.

Ashley expected this. Pretty soon tears were pouring out in streams. "Please?" she said in a quiet tone."I'm really, really hungry . . ."

The mouse rolled its eyes and tried diverting its gaze. It wasn't going to let a couple of alligator tears get the best of it. But tears were the least of its worries. Not long the wails started and the more Pikachu tried to ignore it, the louder Ashley got. What was a Pikachu to do to get a nice quiet morning? It didn't spare any more time before racing towards the trees.

Ashley made sure Pikachu was far out enough when the crying came to an abrupt stop. After a couple of swipes of her sleeve, it looked as if Ashley never cried at all.

"Well . . ." A hand slid into her shorts pocket, and out came a candy bar. The girl smiled. "Served it right."

Now don't get her wrong. She wasn't lying about the lost supplies. Only about the 'everything' the part.

* * *

After changing and washing up by the river, Ashley had come up with a reasonable way to spend her Pikachu-free pass.

It was in fact something she'd been meaning to try since the start of her journey. From the side of her backpack she took out the present Mrs. Ketchum had given her. To a stranger's eye, it was no doubt worthless. Just a black rod with no significant appeal. It looked a bit like a stunted baton. But if under closer observation, it was actually a handle with a line of buttons running down the side. Each with its own function and property.

Ashley momentarily considered activating the first button. However, after a few moments of rethinking, she opted for the second one.

Inside the handle, something whirled to life. A circular latch on top sunk inwards and out extended the fishing rod all the way to its optimum. Delia wasn't kidding when she said she'd gotten the latest modifications. The wire came next, snaking its way up as if drawn by a pulley. There was no spool or reel, just another button, though bigger than the rest, to pull in the catch. At the end of the string hung a minimized pokeball.

_This was Dad's favorite._

Her father had taught her all he knew about the sport, from the right bait to use to the most comfortable waiting position. Years of neglect had washed away most of those teaching though. She had tried keeping up with the hobby after Dad died but could never find any actual footing in it especially since she was so young at that time. Giving up was easy back then. But no matter how terrible she was at it, fishing always retained a special place in her heart. Ashley wondered whether she even remembered how to cast.

She held the rod tighter. Well, it was time to find out. She took a place by the edge, readying herself.

_"Relax. You can do this. I know you can."_

That voice . . . It played out so clearly in her head. Her eyes closed, shoulders eased up and almost visibly her posture softened.

_"Now, make sure the line is against the rod."_

With a finger, she pressed the wire down, so that it was taut and she could feel the weight of the pokeball beneath her touch.

_"Good girl. Pull it back."_

She drew the rod backwards.

_"Are you ready?"_

A deep breath. Her grip was firm.

_"Then, just release."_

It swung forward, in one smooth arch over her head. There was a splash as the bait hit the water. Her eyes went wide.

_I did it, Daddy! I did it. _

_"See, it's easy isn't it."_

_Sure is. Um, now what?  
_

_"Now? Now, we wait of course."_

Her best childhood memories always involved her father. They may be few, but that made them all the more special. And so, taking a comfortable spot on the grass, she waited.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the forest, Pikachu was crawling and sniffing around for anything edible. It was only here for two reasons: first; even though it can't stand its trainer, it can't stand its trainer's noisiness more. And second; it was pretty hungry as well and in this way, Ashley would never know that Pikachu had kept all the ripe, juicy berries for itself, leaving her with whatever was left. To kill two birds with one stone, as the saying goes.

After deciding that it had had enough to stay satisfied until its next meal, Pikachu gathered Ashley's rather green, rather unappetizing remainder in its arms and set off. Unfortunately, with its hands full, it had no choice but to walk on its back legs which Pikachu soon realized was harder than it looked. This was probably the most human behavior it have ever attempted and it did not like how it feel one bit.

Pikachu waddled forward slowly, concentrating on lifting one feet after the other, keeping an eye on the ground and another at its load. As it walked on, a soft cooing caught it attention from above. It looked up to see a Pidgey, perched high on a branch. A Pidgey with an eyepatch. It was just sitting there, staring at the mouse with such one-eyed intensity that made Pikachu rather uncomfortable.

"Pika?"

Pikachu asked the Pidgey if something was wrong but there was no reply. The bird gave one last lingering look before spreading its small wings and flew away. If Pikachu could, it would probably do the same. The sky seemed to be a much safer place at the moment. Pikachu continued forward, only this time at a faster pace. Something about the forest was starting to get to it and weird, staring Pidgeys were probably the last thing it should be worried about. In its haste, it did not notice a couple of berries falling from its hold.

_. . crunch . . ._

The mouse jumped. On instinct, it spun around, ready to discharge an attack in a flash. But as it scanned its surroundings, there was nothing bizarre or intimidating in sight. All it saw was the normal settings: trees, bushes and overgrown weeds. _Very _overgrown. It felt a strange tingle in its spine as it examined a set of grass that grew apart from the rest of the verdure. The large leaves looked more well kept than anything else it had seen in the forest, almost like it was cared for. It was odd, that much was true, but definitely not threatening. Pikachu's gaze then wandered to the fallen berries at its feet, wondering if it should pick them up. However, at the end, Pikachu decided against it. Pokemon always rely on their instincts, and right now Pikachu's was telling it to _run_.

And run it did. As fast as it could on two legs anyway. More berries fell out.

_Crunch . . ._

This time, it didn't bother looking back. Quickly shaking the scare out of its body and ignoring the sound, it kept going, forcing itself to hum a happy Pikachu tune as it went.

_Snap_.

Pikachu froze. No amount of humming would help it now. It didn't want to see what was behind it, but it knew, it _knew _that it was going to. With deliberate slowness, Pikachu held its breath as it looked over its shoulder. Any berries that were once on the ground were no more, and in their place was something that wasn't there a few seconds ago. The strange clump of leaves, the one that Pikachu had dubbed different from the rest, was now standing just behind it. The fur on its back rose like pin-needles. It looked at the place where it had first saw the leaves and sure enough, the leaves had moved. Whatever was left of the mouse bravado slipped away in that instance.

Forgetting all about Ashley, it threw the berries at the stalking weed and took off on all fours, not willing to wait around to see what would happen if it stayed. You would think that Pikachu gave itself a thundershock by the way it fled.

The leaves were still for a moment. The entire forest was silent. And then, it started to rustle, then sway. Back and forth, back and forth. Like quicksand, Ashley's supposed breakfast sunk into the ground. The same Pidgey watched on, safe on a different branch, as it listened to soft crunching from beneath the earth.

* * *

**To be continued . . .**


	5. 4: A Morning Mist

Chapter 4: A Morning Mist

--

Ashley cursed the summer weather. Fifteen minutes of sitting by the river's edge, rod in hand, and already she was sweating like a pig. She sighed and took a swig from her water bottle. The drink did not help much to soothe her agitation and the one candy bar she had did little for her hunger. She exhaled sharply, drawing her knees in and resting her head on them. Lucky for her, a tug on the line drew her out of her miserable stupor.

"What - I got a bite? I got a bite!"

The girl's excitement was short lived when the tugging nearly sent her into the water. Scrambling to her feet, she began to reel in, barely keeping her nerves in check. After much tussle, a round, blue head surfaced, followed by a huge pair of inquiring eyes and a pink, pouty mouth.

"A pokemon!" The girl was grinning like a maniac as she pumped her fist in the air. "It's a-a . . . um." Ashley's smile faded. "What _are _you?"

She tilted her head to one side and the pokemon did the same. Like any other ordinary girl, Ashley squealed at the cute gesture. It was the single most adorable thing she had ever seen since PM Inc. started producing Jigglypuff dolls.

"Aww, come here you!" She stretched out her arms. "Come on, little cutie. Come on. Come to Ashley."

Whatever nice thoughts she had about the pokemon soon disappeared as a squirt of water hit her on the face dead on. Despite the strong current, the pokemon floated on its back, laughing at the girl's gobsmacked expression.

"I'm - what -" she sputtered. "Why you!"

The pokemon was still busy laughing when Ashley opened the Pokédex in its direction. Out came a computerized voice: "_Poliwag, the Tadpole Pokémon__. It has no arms but its tail makes it a good swimmer. The swirl-like patterns on its abdomen is actually its insides showing through the skin._"

"So that's what you are. Ugh, well whatever." Ashley wiped at her eyes. "Get ready to pay, Poliwag! Pikachu, get 'im!"

A few seconds pass. And then a minute. Nothing happened.

Ashley blinked, before smacking herself on the forehead. She had forgotten that the mouse was still in the forest. Poliwag giggled, watching the girl in amusement. Now that it knew the human had no pokemon to back her up, it dove under, frailing around violently to create a big splash. Ashley raised her arms to shield herself but it was too late. She was soaked.

"Hey! Quit it!" she protested. "S-stop!"

The little prankster poked out of the water once more, doubling over at the sight of the drenched girl until it could barely keep its eyes open. It the midst of its glee, it did not notice Ashley's hand slowly inching towards a rock by her feet.

_If Pikachu isn't here to help me, then I'll just help myself._

The rock was already sailing through the air when Poliwag finally took notice. The earlier mirth vanished in an instance. It froze, too scared to even duck under. Squeezing its eyes shut, it braced for the pain. There was an outraged cry and Poliwag felt something hit the water just beside it. The pokemon cracked open one eye and saw the human girl in clear frustration, though her frustration wasn't on it. Poliwag turned around and to its surprise, another weird girl stood on the opposite bank with an even weirder pokemon beside her.

Poliwag then decided that this was enough crazy for one day. Without a backward glance, it swam away along with the current.

"No! Wait, come back!" Ashley cried out. It was useless. Her catch was gone. Furious, she turned on the newcomer. "You see what you did? Because of you the pokemon got away! Who the heck do you think you are butting into people's business like that!"

The orange-haired stranger took up a defense of her own, crossing her arms over her chest. "Who do you think _you _are? If I hadn't come around when I did that Poliwag could have gotten hurt or worse. That's the stupidest thing I've ever seen. You could have knocked it out."

"I was going to capture it! That's the whole point!"

"Oh, yeah? What if it fainted and your pokeball didn't get it in time? Poliwag is an amphibian. Not a fish. They can still drown. And with the current so strong who knows what could have happened."

Ashley frowned, fuming in exasperation. "I'll tell you what'll happen. I could have caught myself a Poliwag! I don't even know you and I definitely don't need some know-it-all telling me what's what. Who are you anyway, some overdressed pokemon ranger?" Ashley said sarcastically, eying the girl's dull yellow top and short blue overalls.

"Well, who are you! A desperate child poacher?" the other girl retorted. "I have the right to call the authorities on you."

Ashley chuckled dryly, unfazed. "For what? Trying to capture a Pokémon? For your information, Ms. Not-So-Know-It-All, that's what trainers do!"

"Trainer? Hah! That's good one. Is it a new trend to use rocks over your own pokemon too?"

Just as Ashley was about to deliver a counter, a frantic Pikachu rushed out of the trees, streaking across the grass like a furry yellow flash. In a rare, unprecedented event, the mouse scurried up its trainer's legs and attempted to hide itself within the safe confines of her shirt, barely caring that it was damp. Ashley shrieked at the felt of scratchy paws against her bare skin and shoved Pikachu out in her surprise.

"Where did you come from?" she demanded. "Don't scare me like that!"

Ignoring her reaction, Pikachu got back up and started pulling at her skirt. "Pi! Kah, chu! Pika, pika!"

"What's wrong with you?" asked Ashley, narrowing her eyes.

"Kachuuu!" The mouse was jumping up and down in agitation.

"That Pikachu's yours?" inquired the other girl. "It seems pretty spooked."

Ashley shot a blistering look at her. "Ya think?"

She got a frown in return. "Has anyone ever told you that you're such a brat?"

"Whatever." Ashley muttered. "Look, don't you have a pit to be in or something?"

The carrot top bristled, her face turning one shade darker than her hair. "Hah, hah. Hilarious. Real mature too."

"Look who's talking."

"At least I'm not some clueless, wannabe trainer!"

"Well, at least _I'm_ not a know-it-all!"

"Better than a know-_nothing-_at-all!"

"Meddler!"

"Dork!"

"Bonehead!"

"Dimwit!"

"Hag!"

"Punk!"

"Grandma!"

The other girl opened her mouth then stopped. Did she just hear that right?

"PIKAA! PI,PI! PI, PIKACHU!"

Both girls reluctantly ceased in their glaring and turned on the mouse with rage. "WHAT?" They shouted in unison.

"Chuuu! Pi, pika! Kachu, Pikachu!" In Pokémon's speech, that was: _We must leave! Something bad is after us!_

It was not a surprise that neither human caught on, and Pikachu watched helplessly as it received blank looks in return. The redhead was the first to speak up, clearing her throat loudly. "It's your Pokémon. You should know what it wants."

Ashley looked thoughtful for a moment. That gave Pikachu hope. Maybe its trainer understood after all.

The brunette then leaned forward, leveling her face with her pokemon until they were nearly nose to nose (though she had learned by now to keep some sort of distance). She took a hard look at Pikachu, her eyebrows furrowing together. Pikachu felt rather nervous under the sudden scrutiny until: "Is that berry juice around your mouth?" Ashley asked suspiciously with a frown. "It is, isn't it!"

Pikachu wanted to smack itself, or at least smack its trainer. "Pikapi! Pikah! Ch-"

Then, it did the mistake of looking. For just beyond the forest's border was an odd set of leaves, five in total, that weren't around a few seconds ago. The mouse felt its body stiffen from the tip of its tail to the points of its ears. "Chaaa!" It scampered up its trainer again and proceeded to hide itself under her hat.

"What the -" In her surprise, Ashley roughly tossed the shaking Pikachu onto the ground. "What's with you?!"

"Hey! Don't treat your Pokémon like that!" The redhead protested.

"You really, _really _need to stop butting in."

"Make me!"

The bickering carried on, much to Pikachu's dismay. Out of the corner of its eyes, Pikachu glanced at the weed and almost gave out a sigh of relief when it saw that it was still in place. For now at least. It looked innocent enough, but Pikachu knew better. If its trainer wasn't going to listen to it, then Pikachu was going to take care of that stalker of a weed on its own once and for all.

With wary steps, it made its way over, keeping both eyes wary. If the leaves showed the slightest movement, Pikachu would know. Nearer and nearer the mouse crept, its body pressed close to the ground, ears flattened attentively. One more stride and Pikachu would be close enough to pounce.

Just then, Ashley called out to her Pokémon. "Pikachu! What are you doing? Get back here or I'm leaving without you!"

Pikachu looked over its shoulders and true to her words, Ashley was already packing up her things, cheeks flushed from her argument with the orange-haired girl who was still glaring from across the river, equally red faced.

The mouse jumped for joy, not even realizing that it carelessly turned its back on the weed.

A vibration went through the ground. Almost like a lick of a tremor, so soft beneath Pikachu's feet that the mouse nearly left it up to its own wild imagination. That was until it felt a presence from behind, rising out of the soil. A warning flare lit up within its head but the mouse was so overcome with fear that it could hardly whimper. It could only throw frantic looks at Ashley as it stood, frozen like a statue, praying, _pleading _that the girl would take notice. Ashley, on the other hand, was too busy putting away her rod to spare Pikachu a glance.

It wasn't until a blast of energy crackled through the air did Ashley look up to see Pikachu rushing towards her. Again.

However, she didn't even protest when it jumped into her arms because another sight held her attention. Lying on the grass a distance away, having taken the full hit of a thundershock was one pokemon which Ashley could easily identified.

"I can't believe it! An Oddish!" she cried out. She narrowed her eyes at the mouse sternly. "What is the matter with you! Look what you did to it!"

"Pikapi, pi. Pika! Pikachu!"

Pikachu tried to explain itself but it fell on deaf ears. Much to no one's surprise.

"The poor little thing," cooed Ashley, dropping Pikachu and making her way over to the fallen weed. She knelt beside it before gently lifting it up. Lucky for Oddish, electric attacks were rather ineffective and it was already shaking the unpleasantness out of its system like a Growlithe would with fleas. The first thing it saw when it reopened its eyes was the ecstatic face of a female human.

"Odd?" It inquired, blinking.

"How cute!" Ashley squealed. "I always wanted an Oddish!" She then turned to Pikachu. "Was this what you were scared of? You gotta be kidding me. Oddish are the sweetest Pokémon ev -" The said sweetest pokemon was now looking at her with an almost hungry expression. "- ver?" Oddish wiggled itself free from the girl's grip and totted over to her back. "H-hey!" With a deftness, it used its leaves to pull the backpack right off Ashley's shoulders.

Ashley watched as the Oddish maneuvered its leaves just as she would with her hands. One leaf was used to hold up the backpack, making sure it didn't touch the ground. Another two flicked opened the top, almost like it knew how it would work, and began rummaging through her things. Ashley couldn't help but note that the Oddish seemed all too familiar with what it was doing. Realization wasn't far behind.

"_You're_ the one who stole our food!" Ashley exclaimed.

Oddish threw the bag aside, disappointed with its contents. It looked up at Ashley, sparing her a few seconds before turning to Pikachu. It sniffed the air, eying the dark smears around Pikachu mouth and grinned. The mouse smelled good.

"Oddish!" The weed Pokémon gave out a happy cry and made a dash for the already frightened Pikachu.

Ashley stood in silence by as the two pokemon went around in circles with Pikachu running away as fast as it could and Oddish trying to chomp down on Pikachu's tail.

"That's one hungry Oddish," muttered Ashley.

Just when Ashley thought things couldn't get any weirder, there was a screeching sound and a Pidgey swooped out of the trees. It was wearing an eye-patch. Both humans and pokemon turned their attention skyward. At the sight of the new arrival, Oddish's expression contorted into fear. Pikachu stopped when it saw that the grass-Pokémon had abandoned its pursuit and was now making a beeline for the trees. Too bad for Oddish, the Pidgey was ready. The bird dove like a bomb, claws going straight for the Oddish's leafy top. Despite being such a tiny bird, Pidgey had no trouble overcoming the larger pokemon and lifting it off into the air.

"No!" Ashley was horrified. "Pikachu, hurry! You gotta help it before that Oddish becomes bird food!"

Pikachu had the right mind to throw a little victory dance but the pathetic sight of the weed squirming beneath the Pidgey's grasp caused it to have a change of heart. The mouse sighed, wondering if it would regret its actions later.

On its trainer's urgings, it bolted towards a boulder by the river's edge. The Pidgey was not too high up, flying overhead, just within the mouse's reach. Pikachu leaped onto the top of the rock and propelled itself into the air. The bird never saw it coming until Pikachu was hanging off its wing. The sudden assault and lost of balance allowed Oddish to wiggle free. Ashley had rushed forward and managed to catch the grass-Pokémon before it hit the ground.

"I got 'im, Pikachu! Now let go!"

The Pidgey, however, was not going to let Pikachu get away that easily. The bird swooped down without warning, causing Pikachu to lose its grip and fall into the treacherous waters.

From that point on, the rest of Ashley's actions was a blur. She vaguely remembered dropping Oddish and plunging into the cold, biting currents. Her skin was already numb by the first few seconds. Her eyes stung and her breath felt strangled. The speed was too fast and too strong but still the girl kicked and kicked until she broke the surface. She caught a glimpse of the mouse being carried away, a speck of yellow against the frothy white. Like a madwoman she cut through the waves. The only purpose driving her on was getting that annoying yellow rat safely in her arms.

Pikachu had managed to grab hold of a fallen trunk, but just barely, hanging onto by skin of its teeth. "Pika! Pikapi!"

Its plead for help stirred a strange emotion within Ashley. "Hang on!" she yelled over the rush of the river. "Ju-Just hang on and don't y-you let g - . . ."

As luck would have it, Ashley miscalculated the force of impact and her own ability to steer, slamming into the trunk head on. Any chance of staying afloat slipped away along with her consciousness. She vaguely perceived Pikachu's insistent calls before going under.

* * *

_Come on!_

She could hear a voice in the dark. It sounded so close and so far at the same time. She wanted to speak but there was a tightness in her chest, a clot of some sort which made it impossible to use her mouth or nose.

_For Pete's sake, wake up! Breathe!_

Breathe? She couldn't. Everything felt clogged. A sound pounded in her ears, and the voice got more severe. More desperate.

_Dammit! YOU BRAT! WAKE UP!_

She felt a very unpleasant surge and soon she was on her side, drenched and cold, choking up mouthfuls of water. Her eyes, nose and lungs were burning. But other than that she was alive. She was alive and that was all she needed to be.

"Pikapi!"

Ashley was greeted by a pair of black eyes and a big shining smile. Pikachu squeezed its way around her arms and hugged its trainer by the neck.

"Thank god . . ." The orange-haired girl from before sat back, sighing with relief.

"Wh-what happened?" Ashley asked in between coughs.

"You took a pretty bad hit to the head and went under for a couple of minutes. We thought you were a goner."

"How did I - how did Pikachu get . . ."

"Staryu. He saved you both."

"R-Really?" Ashley suddenly felt sick to the pit of her stomach. "That means that . . . If you weren't around, there's not telling what could've happened. I owe you one."

"Pikachu!"

"_We _owe you."

"That's true. With the brain the size of yours _anything _could have happened." The other girl laughed to let her know that she was simply teasing. "I'm Misty by the way."

"Ashley. Ashley Ketchum."

"Where're you from?"

"Pallet Town."

"Pallet? Hey, isn't that where that famous Professor lives?"

"Yup. The one and only Professor Oaks."

"That's him! You know him?"

"Sure, everyone in town knows him. He's the one who gave me Pikachu." Ashley placed a hand on the said Pokémon's head, smiling. "He wasn't kidding when he said that you were going to be hard work," she said. "It's been two days since we left and already I've passed out twice."

Pikachu looked down sheepishly while Misty appeared confused. "Twice?"

Ashley shook her head. "You don't want to know."

"I didn't think so," she muttered. "Here, let me help you up."

Grabbing Misty's outstretched hand, Ashley hauled herself onto her feet, a bit unsteadily. Her head was spinning and the wet clothes were on the verge of catching her a cold. She was in dire need of a change.

"Could you pass me my backpack, Pikachu?"

Slowly Pikachu's face fell and shook its head, motioning to something to its left. Ashley turned and her eyes widened in surprise. There, atop her backpack sat a certain grass-Pokémon who was busy munching away on an apple.

"It's still here!" said Ashley.

"Yeah. I wanted to calm it down after the Pidgey incident so I gave it something to eat." Misty rubbed the back of her neck. "The bad thing is now it won't leave." Oddish was already done with its apple right down to the core and searching around for any bits it might have missed. "Still hungry?" Misty was in disbelief. Oddish looked at her pleadingly, nodding. "But you already went through almost everything I have!"

Ashley quickly added, "If you come with us, you'll have all the apples you want!"

"Oddish, Oddish!" It was a firm agreement.

"You sure you want to take it along?" asked Misty. "That thing can eat like there's no tomorrow."

"Sure I'm sure! It shouldn't be too much of a problem. It's just an Oddish after all. It's bound to get tired at some point."

Misty shrugged. "It's your call."

"Right." Ashley was more steady on her feet now. "Anyway, do you have any idea which town the river leads to?"

"Viridian City of course," said Misty, rolling her eyes. "Everyone around these parts knows that. Are you sure you're from Pallet Town?"

Ashley frowned but chose to ignore that comment. "Well, thanks for your help again. It was a real lifesaver, literally. But me and Pikachu really ought to be going. Oh and Oddish too."

"Oh no you don't. I'm going with you."

"What?" Ashley blinked. "Uh, look I really appreciate your help and all. But no, you're not."

"Yes I am." Misty insisted.

"But . . . w-why?"

"Well, I figured a favor as big as this would deserve some sort of equally _big _compensation."

For a moment, Ashley decided that she would rather be at the bottom of the river than to listen to what the other girl has to say, mainly because Misty did have a point there. After all, what does one rewards a person who has saved one's life? Judging by the way Misty's eyes twinkled evilly, Ashley guessed that she knew the answer to that.

"What kind of 'big' compensation are we talking about?" Ashley ventured at last.

"Oh, I don't know." Misty tapped her chin thoughtfully, deliberately. "Like say, a bike?"

The younger girl burst out laughing. "Nice try. That's real funny."

"I'm not joking."

"Yes you are. Who in their right mind would spend such money on someone they don't even know?"

"Maybe if that someone _saved their life_?"

"And like I mentioned before, thank you. It was very, very kind," said Ashley, nonchalantly walking over to pick up her backpack. "And you know what, just for the sake of entertaining you, I'll play along and _pretend _that you're not joking. And I'm not joking either when I say: PIKACHU, ODDISH, RUN FOR IT!"

Misty felt a gust of wind blew past her as the escaping trio took off. She stood still for a second, processing what had just happened before running after them.

Ashley could her the redhead's angry yells from behind. She looked at the two pokemon to her left and laughed.

"Nothing like having an angry Poliwag God on your tail!" she shouted as they ran.

"Pika!" the mouse agreed, even though it had no idea what that meant.

* * *

**To be continued . . .  


* * *

**

Author's Note:

Sorry for Misty's being OOC :(

Facts to take note of:

1) Misty doesn't start off with a bike in this story, but 'Ash' still ends up owing her one via scene in the chapter :)


	6. 5: Hunger Pangs

Chapter 5: Hunger Pangs

--

"You what?!"

"I - uh, I-I . . ."

"I can't believe it. I just cant believe it!"

"There's no need to shout . . . It was an honest mistake."

"Mistake? _Mistake_? Putting salt instead of sugar in lemonade. Now that's a mistake. Getting lost while you had a map is just plain dumb! You could have been lost for days. What if you were hurt or injured and there's no one around to help? Or what if you were kidnapped! Who's fault would it be then hm?!"

Ashley cringed. "Mom, pleeease. Keep it down, will you?"

"Don't you use that tone with me. I have the right to drag your irresponsible butt back home this instance."

"Awh, Mom!"

Delia leaned in closer to the screen with a suspicious look on her face. "I bet you didn't remember to change your underwear either, did you?" she stated, not bothering to lower her voice at all.

From the other side of the Viridian Pokémon Center's lounge, a certain redhead chortled loudly. Color flushed the younger girl's cheeks.

"M-mom!" she protested in a sharp whisper. "Not so loud, will you? There're people here."

"Ashley Ketchum." Delia looked sternly at her daughter. "Are you embarrassed by your own mother?"

"Yes. I mean, no! Of course not! Um, well . . ." Ashley gulped. "D-Didn't the Professor say he wanted to speak with me?"

"Oh no you don't. You are not changing the subjec-"

At the mention of his name, Oak himself appeared from the side, literally bumping Mrs. Ketchum right out of view and grabbing the receiver.

"Ah, Ashley. Good to hear from you," he said, all smiles. "How's the trainer's life coming along?"

Ashley blinked. "It's good, Professor. Uh, what happened to Mom?"

"Don't you worry, dear. Delia will get right back to you." In the background, Ashley could hear her mother rambling on disapprovingly. "Now, tell me, have you been making any new additions to your team?"

"Yup. I have. Actually I was just telling Mom about a pokemon I caught." At the mention of her own achievement, Ashley felt a ripple of pride which she coolly dismissed by saying, "It's just an Oddish though. Nothing big."

"Why, congratulations, Ashley. Any progress is progress nonetheless. Oh and how's my old Pikachu doing?"

"Pikachu's fine, Professor."

"She's not being too much of a pest is she?"

"Well, I didn't say that." Ashley grinned reassuringly. "But it's nothing I can't handle."

"Good, good. For a moment there I thought she'd get the better of you. I'm glad to know that I was wrong." The Professor smiled. "Where is that little runt anyway?"

"We're at the Center right now. She and Oddish are getting treated and -"

"Hey! You're Professor Oak!"

Ashley didn't even realized that Misty had snuck up from behind until she was shouting in her ear, staring at the screen in wonder. The redhead had her hands on Ashley's face and was attempting to push her away to get a better glimpse at the famous Professor.

"Getoffme!" Ashley protested.

"Quit shoving!"

"You first!"

Delia poked her head into view at this point. "Honey, you never told me you were traveling with someone else. Who's your friend?"

"She's not my friend," Ashley muttered.

"I'm Misty," the redhead said brightly. "It's a pleasure to meet you Mrs. Ketchum."

"The pleasure's mine." Mrs. Ketchum replied. "Mind if I ask how you and Ashley met, Misty?"

"Oh, Mom it's nothing interesting -"

"I was just passing through when I found Ashley fishing by the river." Misty went on undeterred, making Ashley cringe. "She wasn't doing such a good job so I stopped to give her tips. After that we really started to get to know each other once I saved her from drowning," she added sweetly.

"That's nice." Delia's smile seemed frozen. There was a slight pause, and then, "DROWNING?"

Ashley mentally reminded herself to strap Misty to a toilet seat once she gets the chance. But at the moment, "Eh heh," was all Ashley could manage, looking at her shoes sheepishly. "I can explain . . ."

* * *

It was nearly an hour before the video screen finally went blank and Ashley hung up the phone with relief. The girl could still her mother's yells echoing through her head. She plopped down on the sofa beside Misty.

"Thanks a lot," she muttered. "Because of you Mom thinks I'm some three-legged, accident-prone."

"Well you are. Sorta." Misty flipped a page of the magazine she was reading, not even looking up at the other girl. "She seems really cool. And by the way Nurse Joy came by just now asking for you."

Ashley groaned. "Couldn't you have told me that before I sat down?"

Misty shrugged, focused on her reading. Suddenly, she gasped. "Ooh look! The Celadon Departmental Store just launched a new brand of sport shoes!"

A pair of blue eyes rolled in exasperation and Ashley got up without another word. The receptionist area was empty however when she got there. _The nurse must have gotten tired of waiting, no doubt_, thought the girl, once again cursing Misty for butting in with her phone call. Just as Ashley was about to ring the counter bell she felt a hand on her shoulder.

The girl visibly jumped which in turn caused Nurse Joy to jump as well. "Oh! Pardon me, Miss Ketchum. I didn't mean to scare you."

"Pikapi!"

Before Ashley could argue Pikachu jumped out of the nurse's arms and into hers.

"She's very fond of you," praised Joy.

"Naw. She's just a great actress." Ashley was going for a serious tone but failed, her heart turning soft as Pikachu nuzzled her cheek. "So where's my other Pokémon?" she asked after setting Pikachu on top of her hat.

"Ah, well, you see, about your Oddish . . . There is a matter I'd wished to discuss with you. If you'd please come with me to my office -"

Ashley felt a cold jolt through her body. "Is something wrong?"

The nurse just kept her amicable smile, walked past Ashley and lifted the counter door. "Everything will be explained soon. This way, please, Miss Ketchum."

Seeing no other solution, the young girl obliged. The nurse led her to a door on the right before shutting it firmly behind them. Inside, Ashley observed that it was no bigger than her bedroom back home. The paint job was as plain and sterile as the rest of the building. There was no window but it was air-conditioned. File cabinets lined up the entire west wall with a metal tray leaning against the opposite side and a desk at the corner where a Chansey stood by. On it sat the Center's only PC, a mug, some neatly stacked folders and a familiar grass-pokemon.

"Oddish!" Ashley cried out more in relief than anything else.

The little thing looked up but the Chansey kept it from moving by taking out an apple from its apron and giving it to the weed. That kept it occupied.

"Here, Miss Ketchum, have a seat." Joy drew up two plastic chair from a corner.

"Just call me Ashley," said the girl, sitting down. "Miss Ketchum reminds me too much of my mother."

The nurse sat beside her. "Very well. Now, you're probably wondering why I needed to speak with you in private."

"Nah, not really."

Joy obviously did not get that bit of sarcasm and carried on. "The truth is I have some questions regarding your Oddish and I'll be needing your cooperation throughout the matter."

"So there _is_ something wrong!"

"No . . . Well not quite." Joy bit her lip but did not pursue the topic further. "Miss Ashley, how long have you had Oddish in your company?" she asked, initiating the interrogation.

"Um, only since this morning."

"Where exactly did you encounter one another?"

"I'm not sure . . . I think for Pikachu it was in the forest. Pikachu met her first."

"And where did _you _meet her?"

"By the river."

"I see." There was a pause. "Where are you from, Miss Ashley?"

"Pallet Town."

"That's near the mountains."

"Yup." Ashley replied, even though it wasn't a question.

"Have you been up there recently?"

"You mean the mountains? No, I've never been up there ever. Mom doesn't allow it. Plenty of accidents have happened with tourists and hikers passing through. I've heard tons of stories from the farming folks about -"

"Yes, I'm aware of the area's reputation." Joy put in. "But what about the flora. What can you tell me about that?"

"The what?"

"The vegetation. Are you familiar with the botany of alpine herbs?"

Ashley blinked. "I'm ten. I'm not familiar with a lot of things." She frowned. "I don't see how this have anything to do with Oddish."

"Just answer the question, Miss Ashley."

"No, okay." Ashley was getting agitated by now. "I'm not familiar with the baloney of whatever."

"Botany." Joy corrected, as patient as ever. "It's the biological study of plants."

"Right. Like I would know anything about that," said the girl derisively.

There was another pause in which Ashley attempted to stare the nurse's placid look down. Joy rose from her seat and walked over to the cabinets. "Tell me, have you ever heard of Jeremiah Neil Treeton?" she asked as she skimmed through the files.

"The explorer?"

"The very one. People know him today as this amazing man who traveled the region and discovered all these new places, but in truth, he was also an avid botanist at heart. Did you know that he founded over hundreds of plant species that we could not live without today? He may be a hero in children books and movie films but he is also a hero in the medical world."

"I had no idea." Ashley said, this time with genuine sincerity.

"Not many people do." Joy had returned with a thick binder. Wordlessly, she ran a finger down the alphabet tags until she came across a specific one. "Ah, here it is." She then handed it over to Ashley.

"Pika?" Pikachu peered over to take a look as well.

Ashley scanned the page, noticing an old, yellowing note attached to the top:

* * *

_17, June__; __Cold & Dry. Morn. Have come across a Strange plant by coincidence. Small in quantity, Rough in felt and Odorless, yet Perkins finds It replusive. He would not stray within a dozen feet radius of It and is eager to depart. Yet I can not, for it is Curiosity that calls me. By morrow, we shall have returned home, Samples safe within my protection._

_18, June; Early Morn, there is thunder and lightning. Boiled water with Its leaves. Mixture is clear. Again, Odorless. Perkins shies away without reason and I believe the reason is in the discovery to be made. I have but a young Ratata, male, vibrant, perfect health and perfect for demonstration. I add the solution in its noon's meal._

_20, June; Clear Day. The Ratata becomes bold. Unusual indeed as I witness the accosting of Perkins. It steals, From the mutt and also myself. That surprises me. It has never shown such hunger and though it eats, for I take it upon myself not to skip feeding, the pantry is no longer safe.  
_

_23, June; Cloudy. Perkins grows restless. Living area has been Stretched to limits and we are all as good as Enemies. I now keep Ratata in its Cage, fearing that Perkins might react disagreeably under its current state. Ratata continues to consume more than what is normal. Three feeding per day has turned into Six with no signs of abatement._

_24, June; Rain. Never have I seen the Ratata so aggressive. So bold. It has chewed through the metal of its Enclosure, much to my surprise and bit Perkins on the tail, drawing an unholy yelp and a small stream of blood before making away with Perkins' part of dinner. I have it now in the Basement, after much luring and care.  
_

_27, June; Foggy with Traces of rain. Alas! The day's morn, I let the Ratata loose for I noticed its hunger has receded, deciding that normalcy has returned. In some sense, it has and in others, it has not. As it stood beside Perkins my surprise was unutterable! Though Ratata had been a small thing, it now stands on equal height with my Growlithe. _

_Gluphorica Entontae  
28 June (.1847)_

_Sir Jeremiah Treeton  


* * *

_

* * *

"I d-don't understand," Ashley finally said after reading the article a good two times. "This -"

"This is an extract of Sir Treeton's personal journal."

"No, I know _that_. I mean, what _is_ this? Some kind of joke? A Ratata the size of a Growlithe? Teeth strong enough to bite through metal? I know its evolved form is capable of that but not Ratata. And - and . . ." Ashley pointed at the bottom print. "What does this here even mean?"

"That, Miss Ashley, is a name. _Gluphorica Entontae_. A rare herb that grows only in high altitudes. Founded in 1847 up on Pallet's Peak."

"Pallet - No . . . You're saying that -"

"Miss Ashley, take a good look at your Oddish. Go on. Look."

Ashley suppressed her churning insides and did as she was told. She couldn't see anything wrong with Oddish at all. Or at least that was what Ashley wanted to say. However, the weed was now in the midst of squeezing itself into Chansey's apron in the hopes of finding more things to munch on.

The nurse sighed. "As mentioned in the extract, symptoms consist of changing moods, aggressiveness and of course, compulsive eating. All of which have been demonstrated by Oddish."

"B-But Oddish hasn't shown a single sign of aggression!" Ashley protested.

"Pikachu!" The mouse agreed.

"As long as you keep its hunger at bay, there's no reason for it to." Joy replied. "Miss Ashley, this plant, this _herb _is known to accelerate growth by speeding up digestive processes and cells conversion, essentially needed in pokemon evolution. I've already ran some tests and its heart rate is way above the norm. Not to mention that its metabolism is off the charts. I make no mistake when I say that your Oddish is experiencing what we call the Snorlax Syndrome, brought upon only by the ingestion of _Gluphorica Entontae_."

"I don't understand," Ashley repeated, sounding desperate. "Even if it did have this Snorlax Syndrome or whatever, what's the big deal? So it eats more than usual. What's so bad about that?"

Joy's big brown eyes were unusually serious. Dead serious. "The 'big deal' is that these changes in its body are unnatural, and in fact downright harmful. It forcefully causes the pokemon to evolve, whether it is at the appropriate level or not and because of that, it's not unusual for its system to reject such drastic adjustments and fail to function accordingly. This can lead to total body shutdown."

"But nothing like that happened to Treeton's Ratata!"

Joy paused. "Not everything is mentioned in that extract," she continued, more quietly than before. "Treeton's specimen was barely a youngster when it was tested. Two days after the hunger passed, it evolved." The nurse drew in a breathe. "From then on it got sick, very sick. Just imagine, the capacity of a Ratata trying to support the requirements of a Raticate. It was an internal battle, something doctors back then were not equipped to manage. It passed away a week later."

"How horrible," said Ashley, dismayed.

"Pika . . ."

"But, but that's not a problem now right? I mean, it's the twentieth century. Surely you guys can save Oddish now?"

"If you're asking for a cure, then yes, there is a sure chance of helping your pokemon. We don't stock it here but I've already sent a call to Cinnabar's Center to have some air-flown right away. It should arrive in a couple of hours."

"Thank god," breathed Ashley, leaning back into the chair. "So . . . Oddish will be okay?"

"Once all the toxins' flushed out she'll be fine," said Joy. Then came the big daunting: "However . . . There is another matter, much more important to be discussed."

"More important? What can be more important that this?"

Joy steadied her own emotions before continuing, "I should have mentioned earlier that _Gluphorica Entontae_ was banned in 1889 due to hundreds of cases regarding exploitation and pokemon abuse. Trainers, particularly wealthy trainers purchased the herb out of their own selfish desire to make their pokemon bigger, stronger, regardless of the dangers it posed. Because of this, it is no longer possible to find the herb in the wild. The government wiped it out after the decree was solidified and -"

"Wait, wait, wait! Hold on a minute," Ashley intercepted. "That doesn't make any sense! Now you're telling me that this Gluphorica plant is extinct?"

"No, only in the wild it is. Some greenhouses and botanical gardens grow it for aesthetic purposes but even they are under tight restrictions by the law. They can only grow a fixed quantity and must obtain permission before doing so."

Ashley frowned. "Okay, I am officially confused. I don't get it, Nurse Joy. If it's already so hard to get the plant, how did Oddish get it?"

"Exactly. That's the big question. Not only that, even if it did find a source, it would be highly unlikely for Oddish to approach it, let alone consume. Sir Treeton mentioned that herb was odorless but later research discovered that it in fact permitted a scent unpleasant to pokemon. The very scent would have drove Oddish away." Joy looked at the weed pokemon somewhat sadly. "Think about Miss Ashley, if finding the herb was already a problem and Oddish would not eat it willingly anyway, what other thoughts would come into mind?"

There was a stretched pause which the nurse did not pursue but allowed it to envelop the room. She turned back to Ashley, watching as the girl put the pieces together. Her countenance was twisted with bewilderment and shock. Blue eyes soon shone with realization and they turned to Joy in horror. The pink-haired nurse pursed her lips and inclined her head in a grave nod.

"Someone gave it to her on purpose," Ashley whispered.

* * *

Unknown to the two occupants, a young orange-haired eavesdropper had had her ear pressed against the door for a good ten minutes. A few other Center patients frowned and shook their heads at her shameful behavior. However, Misty didn't care. Something was going on inside that room and no way was she going to be left out of it. Something was definitely up. Now if only she could figure out what . . .

The lock turned and Misty practically flew away from the door and out from behind the counter. Ashley came out first, Pikachu sitting on her head. Nurse Joy followed with Chansey right behind her. None of them were wearing the slightest trace of a smile. Whatever the talk was about, it obviously wasn't good.

Misty innocently drummed her fingers against the counter-top, looking bored. "Finally!" she declared. "I've been waiting for ages."

Ashley didn't reply, joining Misty's side without a word.

"Here you go, Miss Ashley." The nurse handed over a pokeball with the now contained Oddish inside. "Are you sure you wouldn't rather just leave it here for now?"

"No. Thanks. I got it." The girl grabbed the device.

"Are you sure?" Joy insisted. "You could always just pick it up la-"

"I said: _No_. _Thanks_."

Joy held back a frown, holding together her professional exterior. "Very well then. As you like. Just remember to be back by three o'clock."

"Right. Whatever."

Ashley turned and stormed out of the building. Misty, who was watching the whole exchange, was feeling more than a little clueless. She took a last look at the pink-hair nurse before running after the brunette. Pikachu had a hard time holding on as Ashley took rough, large strides away from the Center. For a kid, Ashley walked fast. Misty eventually caught up, grabbing the younger girl by the shoulder.

"Slow down will you? What's the problem? What happened back there?"

Ashley pushed her hand away, letting out a frustrated cry. "Look, I'm tired of this! When are you going to leave me alone? I don't know you okay and you definitely don't know me. So stop cramping my life and get on with yours!"

Misty took a step back at the angry tone and icy glare. But her surprise was quickly replaced by her own fast temper. "If you haven't noticed, I'm trying to help you here. 'Cept you can't see it 'cause you're too busy being an ungrateful brat!"

"I've never asked for your help!"

"No, but we both know you need it! God I wished I never fished you out of that river!"

"Yeah, well, that's your business. Not mine. Now get out of my way."

Ashley barely got a step ahead when a familiar voice stopped her in her tracks and stopped her heart cold.

"Well, well, well, look who it is! It's the one and only Ashley-weshly. How's it going, loser?"

There was only one person who could make the hair on her back stand like this. Slowly, cringing, she turned. Misty too was now staring at the stranger with a raised eyebrow. Standing just a couple of feet away in all his obnoxious glory was none other than the biggest jerk to walk the planet.

"Fine, Gary. Just fine."

"Still haven't given up eh Ash?" His trademark smirk. "It's real cute that you think you can make it as a trainer but aren't we a little old to be playing pretend? Why don't you just run back home to your Mommy and bake scones or whatever it is that you girls do." Pikachu growled, obviously not liking this new boy one bit. However, that made it all the more amusing for Gary. "At least your Pokemon doesn't find you _completely _pathetic. I guess there's some hope for you yet."

The girl looked down at her shoes. On the inside she was shaking with anger but as usual, she was unable to retaliate. "What do you want?" she said quietly.

"Yeah, what do you want, you little punk." Misty put in. "You sure talk a lot but you're no scarier than any ordinary bug catcher. I bet Ashley can wipe the floor with you, no problem."

Ashley's head shot up. "Misty, no -"

"Oh yeah? Is that true, Ash? I'll show you who's 'all talk'. C'mon loser, I'll take you on. And I'll make Red over here eat her words."

"Bring it!" Misty challenged.

Ashley looked visibly sick at the idea. "No thanks. If you two hotheads want to have it out with one another then be my guest. Just leave me out of it."

"What's with you all of a sudden?" Misty narrowed her eyes at the younger girl. "You never have a problem getting all worked up at me but with this guy you haven't said two words and now you're gonna quit without trying? Funny, I never figured you for a coward."

"I am _not _a coward!"

"Then prove it."

"Yeah, Ashley-weshly. Prove it." Gary had that unfriendly confidence around him as he crossed his arms over his chest. "And heck, if you win, I'll even throw in some of Gary Oak's sure-success tips. You know, to keep you going and all," he snickered. "So, what's it gonna be?"

Ashley wished she could just make a run for it. The other two could get to know each other's family history for all she cared. As long as it gave her time to escape, anything would do. Unfortunately, once again, Misty made the decision for her.

Misty rolled her eyes. "Gary, is it? You better prepare to eat _your _words."

The boy smiled and winked at the redhead. "Bring it."

* * *

**To be continued . . .**


	7. 6: Battles, Burgers & A Big Oddish

Chapter 6: Battles, Burgers & A Big Oddish

--

He had this. He knew he did. The cold smirk on his face said it all as the girl unwillingly shuffled forward. He knew her well enough to know that she was going to lose, and she knew _him _well enough to know what he was going to say when that happened. Not if, but _when_.

However, what neither of them knew, or could possibly predict, was a carload of girls passing by and saving the day.

Saving the day for Ashley at least.

"There he is! Yoo Hoo! Gaaary!"

Six girls sat snugly in a hot red convertible, three in the backseat, and another three atop the front of the hood. Soon Gary was too caught up to remember that they had a battle to take care of, which Ashley was more than happy to keep quiet about.

"Hey, girls," Gary turned around, putting on his charm and completely forgetting about his childhood rival's and her companions' existence. "How's the movie?"

"You missed a good one, Gary." A brunette with pearl earrings replied.

"Yeah, totally! It was hilarious!" The blonde of the group added.

"No it wasn't." One particular girl with blue hair shook her head. "I haven't seen anything that romantic in ages!"

"No way, Fawn. We all know how weird _your _taste is."

"I do not have weird taste!"

"Do to!"

"Do not!"

"Do to!"

"Do - . . . Oh whatever. At least I didn't have the _double cheese and bacon _with _extra mayo_ for breakfast."

The blonde gasped. "That was supposed to be our secret!"

"Girls, girls, girls." Gary clicked his tongue teasingly. "Now what did I tell you about fighting?"

"But Gaaary, Fawn started it." Gill the blonde gave a pout.

"I did not!"

"Did to!"

"Did not!"

"Will you both give it a rest already?" Another girl, wearing sunglasses cut in on the bickering. She gave a dramatic sigh. "Like, it's bad enough that you guys embarrassed us over at the movies but now you're making us look bad in front of Gary's friends."

Six permed, glossed heads turned to look at Ashley and Misty.

"Ooh I didn't see them." The one with a large sunhat said. "They sooo cute. And tiny too. Who're they, Gary. New recruits?"

"Recruits?" Misty frowned. "For what, his cheerleading squad?" There was a calm silence and all the girls in the car seemed unruffled by the comment in the slightest. Misty's eyes went wide. "I was right? This _is _a cheer squad?"

"You got a problem, Red?" Gary challenged.

"Who in the world carries around a bunch of cheerleaders in their car?" Ashley exclaimed.

"Like, Gary of course!" Miss Sunglasses countered.

Out of nowhere, six pairs of blue pompom emerged along with a chant. "_Gary, Gary, he's our man! He can do what no one can! Gaaary!_" The girls erupted into a crazed cheer with Gary looking more inflated by the second.

"The girls know best," he flashed another smile.

"Either that or they don't know much else." Ashley muttered.

"Gaaary, c'mon! We gotta hurry if we're going to make it to the next town by nightfall!"

"You're leaving already?" Ashley perked up, a little too quickly.

Misty, on the other hand, had different things in mind. "Wait, you can't leave! What about our batt- OW!" Misty was successfully silenced by a jab to the side, courtesy of Ashley. The redhead glared. "What was that for?"

Ashley shrugged innocently but said nothing.

"Yup, I'm leaving." Gary climbed into the passenger seat, his arm slung over the side casually. "I've wasted enough time already. No Gym Leader means no badge so I'm outta here. Sorry about cutting the match short, Ash. Put me up for a raincheck will ya?"

"Hold on." Ashley blinked. "What do you mean: 'No Gym Leader'?"

"Are you serious? Heh. Always slow as ever huh. The Gym here has been out of commission for almost a month. I can't believe you don't know that. It was all over every channel awhile back. The Leader's gone missing or something. Don't you ever watch the news? There's more to life than just cartoons you know. But anyway, without its Gym, Viridian is nothing more than a pit stop. If I was you, I'll head to the next place as soon as possible. Oh yeah! Which reminds me . . ." Gary dug around in the car compartment before pulling out a pamphlet. He held it out to the driver, who in turn held it out to Ashley. "It's from May."

"May!" At the mention of Gary's much, _much _kinder sister, Ashley's heart began to warm. She took the pamphlet and as she examined it, a smile broke across her face. It was the latest version of Kanto's map with details of every town, city, port and everything else that would come in handy. "When you get the chance, tell your sister she's a lifesaver."

"Whatever." Gary settled himself into his seat. He gave a salute as he said, "See ya."

The car rolled into motion before speeding away, leaving the two girls choking on dust. They could hear the cheerleaders chanting in the distance, pompoms held high.

"Well, good riddance." Misty stuck out her tongue at the disappearing convertible. "What a jerk. I don't get how you can let him push you around like that, Ashley. It's not right."

"You don't understand . . ." Ashley sighed. "Can we just forget about this? I'm starving."

As Ashley began walking away, Pikachu popped its head out of the bag and licked its trainer's cheek. "Pikapi?"

"Don't worry. I'm fine." Ashley replied gently. She looked over her shoulder at the redhead, who was still standing by the sidewalk, glaring at a distance. "C'mon Misty. It's my treat."

* * *

A few minutes later, the girls were seated on a bench under shady trees. They had found a food vendor situated nearby and was now in the midst of enjoying their respective burgers. Oddish had joined them, having been released by Ashley and given its own individual portion.

Misty was having a hard time looking away as the weed maneuvered its leaves to grab and break the bun, lettuce, tomato and just about everything else into bits and eagerly shoved them into its eager mouth. The sides of its face was already gleaming with splattered ketchup. The redhead glanced at her own burger, before dumping it back into the package and conceding it to Oddish. Watching the weed eat had made the girl lose her appetite and she figured if she was going to waste, might as well waste it on someone who would appreciate her gesture most. She was right. Oddish looked up with a surprised cry, happily waving its leaves in thanks before attacking the extra helping.

"Um, hey Ashley," Misty piped up. "Could I ask you something."

The brunette looked up, her face stuffed. "Wott ish iwt?"

"Swallow first."

Ashley forced the mouthful down, breathed and repeated more articulately, "What is it?"

"Uh, you know, back in the Center with you and Nurse Joy . . ."

"Yeah?" Ashley helped herself to a smaller bite.

"Mind telling me what was it about?"

There was a beat of silence. Sighing, Ashley lowered her burger. "Nothing."

"I'm not stupid, Ashley. It's about Oddish isn't it?"

Ashley kept quiet, fiddling with the wrapper.

Misty frowned. "As the person who saved your life," Ashley groaned at that recurring remark. "I demand you tell me what happened."

"You can't keep using that as an excuse you know!"

"Until you get me a bike, I can use it all I want." Misty stated matter-of-factly. "Now spill."

Ashley exchanged a glance with Pikachu (who returned it with a helpless look of its own) before shifting her gaze onto Oddish. She sighed again, setting her burger onto the ground as well. Oddish was shaking with glee at all the additional offer, digging in without a second thought. In between mouthfuls, it eyed Pikachu's remaining piece, wondering if it would be three times lucky but got a full view of a yellow backside as an answer.

"Fine, I'll talk." Ashley gave in.

Ashley began with Nurse Joy and the office, then about Sir Treeton and his journal's extract and finally onto _Gluphorica Entontae_. She explained the properties of the plant and how Oddish's piggish nature is to be blamed because of it. All the while Misty listened, her mouth hanging opened in a silent gasp, appalled, especially when Ashley mentioned that it was foul play.

"So, who do you think did it?" Misty asked quietly.

"We have no idea. Someone who has connections to a source and a sick sense of humor probably."

The younger girl tried sounding nonchalant but on the inside, her stomach churned with anger. It was due to a part of the conversation which she left out and rather not let Misty, or anyone else for that matter, know . . .

* * *

_"Someone gave it to her on purpose." Ashley whispered.  
_

_"Precisely." Nurse Joy replied._

_"B-But . . . Who! Who would do something like that?"_

_Nurse Joy was quiet, folding her hands over her laps. "Miss Ashley, are you familiar with the Xanadu Nursery located on Pallet Town highlands?"_

_Ashley was thrown off by the change of subjects but then again the nurse seemed to do that a lot. "Um, yeah. You're talking about the one owned by Mr. Showers. I've heard of it. Why?"_

_"You mean, _Miss _Showers. There has been a change of ownership recently. I believe his daughter runs it now and the management has changed somewhat."_

_"So?"_

_"Well, Miss Showers have made additional species to the Nursery in hopes of making it a regional attraction. One of those species is none other than _Gluphorica Entontae_."_

_"No way. I can't believe something like that was so close to home." Ashley was stunned.  
_

_"Close enough for anyone in town to reach it." Nurse Joy added. "Plant nurseries don't always have the best of security."  
_

_"Yeah, I guess."_

_"What I'm trying to say Miss Ashley, is that when an unfortunate event befalls a Pokemon, ultimately, the trainer is to blame. And in this situation . . ." Nurse Joy trailed off, leaving it up to Ashley to figure it out for herself._

_Once again, Ashley was put on the spot, her mind racing to comprehend what had just been said. A warning flare gave out and her chair was knocked back as she stood up in rage, startling all the pokemon in the room. Nurse Joy however, remained calm._

_"You're accusing me of poisoning Oddish?!" Ashley bellowed._

_"Keep your voice down Miss Ashley. I did not say such a thing. It is a regular procedure in which the trainer is bound to take responsibility for any sort of accident, mishap or intervention."_

_"But I did not -"_

_"Without any further information or worthy suspects," Nurse Joy continued, her voice hardening. "I'm afraid Miss Ashley, that you're it."_

_Ashley could only stand there, feeling like the wind have been knocked out of her._

_

* * *

_She was brought back into reality only to find a hand waving in front of her face.

"Ashley? Hellooo. You okay? You blanked out for a minute there," said Misty.

"Pika."

"I-I'm fine."

Misty studied the girl. "You sure?"

"I said I'm fine." Ashley said with more force than intended.

"Okay, okay. Just checking." Misty stood up. "Anyway I'm just about to go get something to drink. You want anything?"

"Pikachu!"

"Odd! Oddish!"

In spite of herself, Ashley smiled. "They'll have some lemonade." There was a cheer from the pokemon.

"What about you?"

"Nah, I'm good."

Once Misty left, Ashley leaned back and allowed herself to get lost in the swaying leaves above, her mind whirling with unsettled thoughts. Pikachu absentmindedly nestled itself on Ashley's lap, oblivious to its trainer's plight.

None of them noticed a pair of gloved hands reaching out from behind a trash can, grabbing the unaware Oddish and pulling it into the shrubs.

Thankfully, the thief was no ballerina and its movements caught the attention of the mouse's sharp ears. It shot up in alert and glanced at the ground only to see three burger wrappers and no Oddish.

"Pikapi!"

"What is it Pikachu? H-Hey! Where's Oddish?" Ashley was pulled out of her reverie.

Pikachu had no time to reply. It had caught onto a scent. The mouse leaped into the bushes much to Ashley's already mounted confusion.

"Pikachu! What the - Not again." The girl scurried to her feet and gave chase. "Come back here!"

* * *

Meanwhile, the thief, now identified as a man with violet hair was streaking through alleyways, laughing gleefully with a bag slung across his shoulder.

"And they thought I couldn't pull it off. Well, wait 'til they see this."

After much effort to avoid being spotted by civilians, he arrived at a rundown building on the outskirts of the town. Like every good thief, he looked around to make sure the coast was clear, knocked on the door three times and waited. A single knock was the reply. He opened and stepped into the musty, dank warehouse. Scattered around the room were shipping equipments such as cranes, ropes and machines that looked as if they haven't been oiled since the dawn of time, all left behind when business closed down and left to collect dust. There were also cages, clustered together to one side at the darkest corner of the room. In the middle, among a set of discarded boxers, sat a woman and a pokemon, looking bored and impatient.

"What took you so long?" The woman groused.

The man grinned charmingly. "Well I had to sneak up in style didn't I? Couldn't let those kids catch on."

"Yea, yea, yea." Surprisingly, it was the Pokemon, a Meowth, that spoke the next words. "Now where's da loot?" it demanded. "Ya sure ya got da right one?"

"Of course I did." The man seemed more upset than angry at the lack of faith. "Here I'll show you."

He pulled off the tie and dumped Oddish onto the floor. The weed looked up to see a pair of malicious blue eyes staring down at it. Those were not the blue of its trainer.

"Well whaddaya know. We don't need tah clean up aftah ol' Jim aftah all."

"You're right, Meowth. I'm surprised as well."

A very unmanly whine followed. "Hey! What is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh shut up, James. We all know how incompetent you are at following instructions." Ignoring her partner, the woman leaned down at the shivering grass-Pokemon. She laughed, wiggling a finger in front of it. "And you thought you could get away from us. Well, let see you try to escape a second time- YEOUCH!" The woman pulled back her hand. "It bit me!"

Meowth doubled over at the sight. "Ya shoulda seen ya fa-face!"

"Why you . . ."

Oddish went sailing through the air like a potted bowling ball and crashed right into Meowth, knocking him out cold. Both Pokemon laid on the ground, stunned.

"Lock that _thing _up with the others." The woman barked.

James, not wanting to be a target of the woman's temper, complied. "Right away, Jessie. By the way, is it just me, or has it grown since the last time we saw it?"

"It's supposed to grow you idiot! That's the whole point of this!"

"Yeah, but it's really, _really _big compared to-"

"James, if you don't put it away right this instance I'm never letting you wear the female disguises ever again."

That got the man into motion. However, just as he picked up the recovering Oddish and moved over to an empty cage, a rustling of metal knobs drew their attention. The warehouse door burst open. James made an "Eep!" sound and in his surprise, dropped Oddish. A Pikachu leaped onto the scene, followed by a girl.

"James!" Jessie snarled. "I thought you said it was a clean getaway!"

"It was! Or at least . . . I thought it was." James whimpered. "No one saw me, Jess, I swear!"

Pikachu growled while Ashley looked around, choking slightly on the stale air. She gasped when she saw Oddish lying next to the man in front of a cage. She squinted her eyes and sure enough, the other cages were not as empty as they looked. She turned her outrage on the two strange older people.

"What is going on here! Who are you people?!"

Jessie stepped forward, drawing to her full height. "Listen, twerp, you didn't see or hear anything. Now I'll give you a chance to walk away and we'll pretend like this never happen."

"Not a chance," Ashley snapped back. "You stole Oddish from me! And I bet anything that every other Pokemon here was stolen too."

"What gave you that idea?" James asked innocently as he tried to stuff the now fully alert Oddish into a cage.

Unfortunately for him, the weed bit his hand too, drawing a yelp and causing James to lose his grip. Now freed, Oddish rushed over to Ashley's side. The woman, however, was unusually fast and managed to intercept Oddish before it had the chance, using the bag James employed earlier to catch the weed once again.

"No!" Ashley cried. "Let her go!"

Jessie grinned, purposely dangling the bag with one hand like fish bait. "Make me." The older woman knew she struck a nerve as fresh anger exploded across the girl's face.

"Pikachu, I want you to use your quick attack. But charge up for a thundershock while you're at it. Aim for that big head of hers. Use anything around you to help throw her off. Okay?"

"Pika!"

Jessie knew the kid was up to something. She could see her mouthing over to the yellow rat. It was just too soft to hear and that made Jessie agitated. "C'mon twerp! Too scared to make a move?" she taunted.

She spoke too soon. All a sudden, Pikachu took off into a mad dash. Fearful and on instinct, Jessie scurried a couple of steps back but quickly stopped and stood her ground when she realized what she was doing. She was not going to let two little mice get the best of her. She sneered with mean intent. No one noticed her hand inching towards her belt. As Pikachu approached, zigzagging across the floor like furry lightning, its cheeks crackled with energy. It leaped onto the edge of a high crate, catapulted itself onto the hook of an overhead crane, and flew straight for Jessie's face, thundershock ready to discharge on impact.

It did not see a purple tail flying into its side and knocking it into a pile of nets.

Jessie let out a cruel laugh. "Just because we steal Pokemon, doesn't mean we don't have any of our own."

"Ekansss."

"Here, here!" James put in, joining Jessie's side. A round Pokemon, constantly puffing gas out of various craters, floated beside him.

By the time Pikachu shook itself free of its entanglement, it came face to face with another snare as the two criminal's Pokemon surrounded it. The snake loomed to its peak, staring the mouse down with mirth while the other one ominously blew a large cloud of smoke.

"Leave Pikachu alone!" Ashley cried.

Jessie and James looked at each other.

"Should we?" Jessie placed a hand on her hip.

"Do you think . . ." James lifted a finger to his chin in thought.

"Nah!" They said in unison before bursting into laughter.

"You had your chance twerp." Jessie pointed out.

"And now it's time to pay the price." James added.

Meowth appeared between the two's shoulders. "Dat's right!"

Ekans was now slowly circling Pikachu and Ashley couldn't help the tremble of her lips. "A-A talking . . . W-Who are you people?"

James pulled out a rose from his inner shirt and twirled it between his fingers. "She asked a very important question, Jessie."

"A very important question indeed, James."

"Oi. Are yous two goons gonna get this show rollin' or am I gonna hafta pull out some popcorn while you're at it?" Meowth demanded.

That earned him a well deserved kiss to the floor.

"Shut up, Meowth!"

"Yes. Do not interrupt us in the middle of an introduction!"

Meowth no longer felt his jaw under the weight of both his companions' boots but did his best to gurgle up an apology.

"Anyway, where were we?" James ran a hand through his hair. "Ah, yes. Jessie, if you will."

"Right. Twerp before we answer your question, _we _have a question for _you_."

Ashley was feeling more and more uncomfortable as it dawned on her that the two other people in the room were probably not of the same mentality. However, nonetheless, she managed to say, "What?"

"Are you ready . . . To prepare for trouble!"

"Make it double!"

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people within our nation!"

"To denounce the evil of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

The woman leaped onto a crate and struck a pose. "Jessie."

The man followed suit at the opposite end, the rose in his mouth. "James."

Together, they chanted: "Team Rocket, blasting off in the speed of light. Surrender now or prepare to fight!"

From the floor, the cat Pokemon muttered, "Dat . . . Right . . ."

* * *

**To be continued . . .

* * *

**

Author's Note: Gotta love Team Rocket ;) original motto all the way!


	8. 7: Up In Flames

Chapter 7: Up In Flames

--

"_Ekans, the Snake Pokémon. It can freely detach its jaw to swallow large prey whole. It can become too heavy to move, however._" A second bleep came on. "_Koffing, the Poison Gas Pok__é__mon. Because it stores several types of toxic gases in its body, it is prone to exploding without warning._"

While the thieves put on a self-entertained show, Ashley smartly snuck out her Pokedéx at their pokemon's direction, in hopes of gaining more information on her adversaries. Both were poisonous she now knew, but would electric attacks hold off against that?

Thank god she had bothered to at least check all of the mouse's stats the day before. Going offensive would be risky, therefore, they would play to Pikachu's other advantage: its speed.

"Pikachu, escape with quick attack!"

The mouse's ears twitched ever so slightly towards its trainer's command. Ekans reacted at that tiny hint of movement and shot down for the kill, fangs bared. Pikachu was quicker, mercifully streaking out of the way and leaving the snake to chomp on dust.

"Good! Don't stop yet, Pikachu! Head for that old lady with Oddish!"

"O-Old la-lady . . ."

Meowth picked himself off the floor just in time to see Jessie's face twisted with madness. "Uh oh. Dis ain't good."

"Pika!"

Unknown to the cat, he picked the wrong time to get up for Pikachu was right behind him and decided to use his big head as a lever to propel into the air, flinging itself at Jessie. This time, there was nothing to get in Pikachu's way. There was a sounding crack as Pikachu used its tail to smack the woman across the face.

"OUCH!" Jessie fell backwards, dropping the bag which held Oddish in favor to soothe her throbbing nose.

Pikachu wasted no time in nudging the now freed weed towards Ashley and the exit. The plan had always been to escape, not to fight back.

"You dirty little rat! How dare you!" Jessie shrieked. "Ekans, get them both with your bind! Don't let them get away!"

"Ekansss."

The unpleasant sight of the snake slithering across the floor caused Oddish to panic and stop in its track. Pikachu bravely stepped between Ekans and the cowering weed, its countenance determined.

"Pikachu, use thundershock!" Ashley cried out.

"Koffing, stop them with your smokescreen!" James commanded.

Pikachu had just sent a few volts through Ekans when the snake's partner floated over, took in a great breathe and released an inky black sheet of smoke. It settled over Pikachu and Oddish, causing both of them to cough violently and shut their eyes from the stingy effect. Ekans grinned from ear to ear as it advanced towards its preys under the cover of the smoke. When the dark fumes cleared, Ashley was greeted by the image of her pokemon squirming helplessly within the snake's crushing grip.

Cruel laughter echoed throughout the warehouse.

"No one messes with Team Rocket and gets away with it. You should have left when you had the chance, twerp. What are you going to do now?" Jessie taunted.

"She can't do nuttin'." Meowth cut in. "If dat Pikachu uses its thundashock, it'll not only toast Ekans, but dat Oddish too."

"You're right, Meowth. Looks like she's in a real 'bind'," said James before the trio burst out laughing.

"That's what you think!"

The laughing ceased. Angrily, Jessie challenged, "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." It was unnerving for the trio to say the least when the girl grinned. "Take a look for yourself."

Three heads turned simultaneously. At first glance, nothing happened. But soon, much to the Rockets' surprise, the constrain on their capture began to loosen, like an undone knot, and Ekans' serpentine body slid limply to the floor. Freed at last, Pikachu and Oddish made it to Ashley's side.

"W-What?!" exclaimed Jessie. "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything," said Ashley. "It's your pokemon's own fault. When Ekans came into contact with Pikachu, it put itself in danger of Pikachu's static ability. And now it's paralyzed."

Jessie snarled. "That's cheating!"

"No it's not! You're just a sore loser!" Ashley retorted.

There was a cry of outrage. "Why you little! . . ." Jessie clenched her fists. "You think you're sooo smart. Well think again. Two can play this game!" An ugly sneer graced her face.

Ashley was about to ask what she meant by that when all of a sudden, as if on cue, her question was answered. The snake, despite its condition, began to move. There was a strange sound, very much like the crinkling of paper, as Ekans inched across the floor.

"Surprised?" The woman mocked. "That's right, twerp. Using shed skin, Ekans can get rid of its paralysis just like that." She snapped her fingers. "You didn't really think it would be that easy to defeat someone as beautiful and talented as me did you?"

"Ooh nice one, Jessie!" James clapped for his partner.

"Yeah!" Meowth agreed, joining in. "Even I didn't see dat comin'!"

"Thank you, thank you." Jessie sighed and waved to her applauding audience while Ashley exchanged worried glances with her pokemon. "Now, what say you and I finish this, James?"

"I'm right with you, Jess."

Ekans hurried over to join the trio and Koffing followed suit. They took up the position in front of their respective trainers. It was Ekans and Koffing against Pikachu and Oddish. Despite the even numbers, the odds did not look favorable and Ashley could do nothing to stop her churning stomach. Just when she thought things couldn't get worse, Jessie declared:

"To make this a little more interesting, if you lose, we get to keep your Oddish."

"And your Pikachu too." James added, crossing his arms with a sly smile.

"Are you crazy? I'm not letting you have my pokemon!"

"That's a shame." Jessie said with mocked sadness. She brought her hand up and studied her nails. "We were going to offer you all the other pokemon's freedom in return. But since you're not interested . . ." she trailed off.

"Wait, hold on a minute. Y-you'd let the others go?"

"Yup!" Meowth raised a finger. "Goin' once." He raised two. "Goin' twice!"

"No, wait!" Ashley bit down on her lips. "I-I can't . . ."

"Da clock's tickin', twerp. So wat's it gonna be?"

"A-Alright. I accept."

James and Jessie exchanged looks before turning back to the girl, each grinning like a Cheshire Persian. Ashley was already regretting her decision.

"Then let's begin!" Jessie announced. "Go, Ekans! Poison sting!"

"Koffing, smog attack!"

As the two pokemon advanced, it took Ashley all she had to hold onto her nerves. "Okay. Oddish, stay close to me for now. Pikachu, I want you to use your double team on the both of them. Throw them off their guard."

"Pi!" The mouse shot off. To the unknowing Rockets, it looked as if Pikachu was running straight towards its opponents for an early defeat.

"Look at dat! Dey're plannin' suicide!" Meowth laughed.

"The pressure must have gone to their heads." James agreed. "Alright, Koffing. There's no holding back!"

"Koff. Fing."

"Same goes for you, Ekans!" shouted Jessie.

"Ekansss."

Both pokemon were just about to execute their attacks when suddenly a sharp cry of "Pikachu!" erupted. Right before their eyes, at least ten Pikachu split from the original and fanned out, surrounding the startled Ekans and Koffing. "Pika, Pika, Pika!" Dozens of echoes filled the warehouse. The copies were in continuous motion, twirling in circles as if on an imaginary merry-go-round. The two purple pokemon looked dizzy enough to drop.

"Great! Now Oddish, get in there with your stun spore!"

"Odd, Odd, Oddish!"

"Not so fast!" Jessie looked ready to explode. "Ekans, don't let that little rat run you over! Hit it with your tail!"

"E-Ekk." Though disorientated, the snake shook its head clear and swiped its entire body through the circle of Pikachu. "Kansss!"

Jessie's plan worked. The original Pikachu was sent flying into a mountain of boxes. The crash triggered the unstable pile to cave in over Pikachu's head, burying the mouse.

"No!" gasped Ashley.

"Yesss!" Jessie cheered. "Now, Ekans, use your bind on Oddish!"

Oddish, who had so eagerly joined to help Pikachu, now stood frozen at the change of tides. The snake let out a spiteful hiss and wasted little efforts in trapping the submissive weed once more. Horrified, Ashley made a move to rush out on to the battlefield but quickly stopped when the bind on Oddish became tighter.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you," warned Jessie. "Otherwise Ekans might just 'accidentally' squeeze too tight."

"Gud work, Jess!" praised Meowth. "One down. One tah go. Now tah take care of dat Pikachu."

"I got this. Leave it to me." James declared. "Go, Koffing, poison gas!"

Koffing floated over to where Pikachu crash landed. Its gas was spewed over the entire pile. There was no way the mouse could escape that attack even if it was conscious.

"It's over," stated Jessie, looking smug.

"Your pokemon are ours," said James.

"Daaat's right!" cried Meowth. "Now beat it, twerp. Da door's dat'ta way. We ain't interested in swipin' humans."

"No . . . It can't be . . . Pikachu! If you can hear me get up! Get up right now!"

James snickered. "It's useless. One whiff of Koffing's poison and your Pikachu should count itself lucky if it can still move."

"That's not true!" Ashley insisted. "You don't know anything about Pikachu! She's tougher than you think!"

"Suit yourself." Jessie shrugged. "But a deal's a deal and we won fair and square." Ekans slithered over with the now unconscious Oddish in tow and handed it over to Jessie who smirked. "We'll be collecting our prizes now if you don't mind. Ekans, go over there and fish out that rat too."

"Oh no you don't! I'm not going to let you!"

Forgetting all about her own safety, Ashley charged at the woman and the snake. But before she even got close something hit her in the gut, knocking her breath out. Ashley felt her legs wobbled and she collapsed onto her knees, clutching her stomach. Meowth stood over her, arms crossed.

"Yous jes dunno when tah giv' up do ya? Why dun you scram already. Before Team Rocket really start playin' dirty."

Ashley's eyes narrowed. Having downplayed the actual strength of Meowth's blow, she took advantage of the situation and brought her foot up, slamming it straight into the cat's soft tummy. An eye for an eye. The cat never saw it coming. He skidded a good couple of feet away, stopping by his partners' boots with a loud groan.

"Maybe next time you'll think twice before hitting a girl!" shouted Ashley.

"Twerp's got a point there," Jessie agreed, a little too smug for Meowth's taste.

Meowth got up but not without throwing a quick glare at red-haired woman. He then growled at Ashley. "You're gunna pay fo' dat!" He sprinted forward, jumping into the air, arms lifted and poised for attack. Something gleamed in the meek sunlight and Ashley panicked when she realized that it was a pawful of razor sharp claws, heading right for her face. She saw Meowth grinned. "Dis will teach ya not tah mess wid Team Roc-"

Just then, a howl erupted.

Out of nowhere, a large blur rushed in from the warehouse's entrance and crashed into Meowth, knocking the cat out of mid-air. It was like getting slammed by an unseen hurricane. The sheer force caused Meowth to black out instantly. The howling continued. Ashley only caught a shape darting through the shipping crates and containers. It was so big yet so agile. And faster than light.

"Eee! Jess, what is that!" In his worry, James latched onto Jessie for comfort.

"Do I look like I kn-know?" The woman's attempt at sounding angry fell a bit short considering she looked just as scared as her companion. That didn't stop her ego from acting up however. "Well whatever it is, I am not going to let it ruin our plans! James, start loading the cages. I'll take care of this."

"But Jessie -"

"Just do what I say!"

James, though reluctant, let go and set off to carry out Jessie's orders.

"You're not going anywhere!" yelled Ashley.

"Pipe down!" Jessie countered. "I had it up to here with your meddling! Ekans, let's teach this twerp a lesson. Give her a taste of your poison sting!"

In compliance, the snake reared up and glared at Ashley before unleashing a volley of needles from its mouth. Ashley barely blink when something jumped out in front of her, something big and orange. She hadn't even grasped hold of the situation when her protector let out a majestic roar and a stream of fire shot out to meet the needles head on, burning them to a crisp and stirring up the stale air.

"Wh-What in the world!" cried Jessie but was quick to silence herself when a pair of intense black eyes met her own blue ones.

The regal pokemon then turned to look at Ashley, revealing to her a wolfish snout and splendid cream-colored mane over orange fur and black markings. This savior of hers had the girl mesmerized. But what captivated her the most was a rather familiar yellow mouse sitting on top of the pokemon's head.

"Pikapi!"

"No way! Pikachu, you're alright!" Trusting that the large fire-pokemon was definitely an ally, Ashley approached it and scooped Pikachu into her arms. "You saved her . . . Thank you. Thank you so much." The lion or wolf or whatever it was let out a low growl in reply. Intrigued, Ashley drew out the Pokedéx and flipped it open:

"_Arcanine, the Legendary Pokemon. The evolved form of Growlithe. Arcanine runs agilely as if on wings and is known for its bravery and fierce loyalty._"

While Ashley and Pikachu enjoyed their brief reunion, Jessie and Ekans had successfully departed from the scene and was now at the very back of the warehouse where James waited in front of an enormous canvas hidden by shadows. "The cages are ready, Jess," he whispered as to not draw attention.

"Koff. Fing." said the purple-Pokémon who was carrying the still out cold Meowth atop it.

"Good," replied the woman. "Now activate sunroof."

To James' right was a control box nailed to the wall. He nodded and pushed a blue button which lit up red. "Sunroof activated."

On the command, an alarm went off and the entire building began to shake as if a tremor was passing through. The old wooden floor creaked and several cranes threatened to fall loose. "Wh-What's going on!" Ashley used her body to shield Pikachu as a shower of dust fell over them. Overhead, for the first time after twenty years of neglect, the roof was slowly splitting open from the center with a sharp screech. The tired whirl of unmaintained bolts and pulleys were easy to perceive and the accumulation of rust over the past decades were taking their toll at last. The roof's movement came to a halt halfway.

"What? Why did it stop? James, I told you to activate the sunroof!"

"I did," whined James, hitting the button again and again. "It won't go any further. I think it's stuck."

"Argh! I guess it can't be help. We're just gonna have to make it work. Let's get going!"

"Right." Grabbing the ends of the canvas, James tugged it down with a swift flourish.

It was then that Ashley saw just how the thieves planned on making their getaway. "That's one big Meowth," she breathed.

"Pika . . ." Pikachu too was stunned.

Looming at a height of nearly fifty feet was a Meowth hot air balloon. Attached underneath it was a green basket. Jessie, James and their pokemon were already inside and as far as Ashley could tell, so were the caged and stolen pokemon. Ashley's panic only increased when she saw Oddish still being held by Jessie. Furthermore, the balloon had begun to rise.

"Sorry, twerp, but it's about time we beautiful people excused ourselves from not-so-beautiful company." Jessie goaded.

"And I hope you don't mind that we took your Oddish to go!" James chirped in brightly.

"H-Hey guys . . ." Meowth was now awake though rather groggy. "Wat 'bout da Pikachu?"

"Hm?" Jessie and James looked down at the mouse below in unison.

"Forget about it," declared Jessie. "One little rat is hardly worth our time."

Having heard Jessie's comment, Pikachu felt fired up at such an insult. Ashley moved her face away to avoid getting hit as sparks of electricity flew from Pikachu's cheeks. Noticing the mouse's displeasure, Jessie laughed haughtily and made a face. "Temper, temper!" she chided childishly. "A little bit more of those sparks and I might just be able to roast some marshmallows."

"Stop it, Pikachu," said Ashley. "Don't let her get to you. We don't have time for that. We need to come up with a plan to stop them." The balloon, despite the narrow opening in the roof, have already managed to slip through. Desperate, Ashley turned to the orange wolf beside her. "Arcanine, can't you do something? Please, they're getting away!"

The fire-pokemon looked at the girl but said nothing. Its countenance was surprisingly calm, almost bored even, like it couldn't be bothered with Ashley's problems.

"Pika, Pika!" yelled Pikachu angrily. However, Arcanine was still unfazed. It stifled a yawn.

"Why won't you help us!" Ashley shouted.

James couldn't hold in his glee any longer. "Look at them! They're not even going to _try _and stop us. This heist is turning out smoothly after all."

"Wait 'til the boss hears about this! Can you say pro-mo-tiooon?" Jessie gushed, her eyes lit up. The basket was almost completely past the roof now.

While Ashley watched helplessly as the balloon moved into the last length of its escape, feeling utterly defeated, Arcanine's gaze darted over Ashley's shoulders. The shift of its eyes were so fast and fleeting that Pikachu would have missed it if it blinked. However, there was no mistaking the grin that now appeared over the fire-pokemon's face. Arcanine tossed its magnificent head back and gave out the loudest howl yet.

The Rocket troupe exchanged worried glances. "What's going on down there?" James inquired.

"Who cares!" Despite feeling nervous, the proud woman once again chose not to show it. "Let's hurry up an-AHH!" Jessie was cut short when suddenly the basket gave a rough rock. The woman nearly dropped Oddish in her fright. "Wh-What was that!"

"Uh oh. Is it me or are we losing altitude?" cried James.

That was when Meowth noticed two suspicious, green appendages clasped tightly over one edge of the basket. He gulped. "Looks like da twerp got herswelf some backup."

"Backup?!" Jessie and James shrieked in unison.

"_Ivysaur, the seed Pokémon. Exposure to sunlight adds to its strength. Sunlight also makes the bud on its back grow bigger._"

Ashley was awestruck at the sheer power of said pokemon. It was taking on that balloon like it was taking down a jar of cookie from a high shelf, tossing Team Rocket back and forth like they were a snowglobe. Even Pikachu watched in wonder, its mouth opened in a silent "Pi . . ."

"That's a cool gadget you have there." That brought Ashley back into reality. It was that boy, Ivysaur's trainer. The one who had so suddenly appeared out of nowhere and took charge of the whole situation faster than she could say her name. And she would bet anything that he owned that Arcanine too. "Now really isn't the time for that though," he continued. "How did you even ended up in a place like this? Those creeps are dangerous."

"Who are you, my Mom? Those _creeps _got my pokemon and I'm not leaving without her."

The boy frowned and Ashley expected him to say "you should have gone for help" or something along those lines. Instead, he simply nodded. "We're stuck in the same boat then. My Sparrow got stolen from me two days ago. I got careless and was set up by this really stupid trap and well . . ." The boy's jaw set in anger. "Anyway, Arcanine's been following their scent ever since and we finally wounded up here. And trust me, I'm not letting them get away this time."

So she was right. Arcanine _was _his.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Ashley."

"I'm Christian. Can I ask you a question, Ashley? Is that Oddish the pokemon you were talking about?"

That piqued Ashley's interest. Her head jerked up. Though part of the balloon was still above the roof, Ivysaur had done a good job reeling in the basket. Ashley saw Jessie and James holding onto each other for support while in between them was a confused but conscious Oddish.

"That's her! That's my Oddish!"

Christian nodded. "Don't worry. I"ll help you get her back. Ivysaur, use one of your vine whip to -"

"N-No!" Ashley suddenly called out. "Hold on a minute! Don't save Oddish just yet."

"What?" The boy blinked. "Are you nuts?"

"Listen for a sec," Ashley replied angrily. "I got an idea. This could help both of us. It's gonna seem a little weird but I need you to let me do this." Ashley could tell that the boy was ready to argue. His dark blue eyes narrowed threateningly. "Please?"

Christian held his glare a bit longer before giving in. "Fine. I just hope you know what you're doing."

"I hope so too . . ." Ashley murmured softly. Turning back to the balloon, she shouted as loud as she could, "Oddish! Oddish, I need you to listen to me! Guess what! I have great news! I've just bought a ton of apples for you!"

Christian instantly regretted his decision. "You _are _nuts," he muttered.

Oddish didn't seem to think so however. Ashley's comment carried a bout of excitement over the weed and it could barely contained itself. It began fighting against Jessie's grip, more vigorously than ever, eager to be freed so that it could rejoin its trainer and the delicious treats that awaited below.

_It's working_, thought Ashley. With more confidence, she continued: "There's one problem though, Oddish!"

"Odd?" The weed stopped and looked at its trainer questioningly.

"Team Rocket stole the apples! And they won't give it back! You gotta make them otherwise there won't be anything to eat!"

"Okay, that's it. You've officially proven yourself to be a first-class weirdo," said Christian. "How was this plan supposed to help -"

Just then, the weed burst out of its captors' grasps and began slapping both Jessie and James around with its leafy top. The Rocket duo never stood a chance against the surprise attack. After the humans, Oddish turned its murderous glare over to the pokemon. It gave a little battle cry, shaking its leaves madly, which Meowth found more cute than dangerous until the weed pounced at his face and started delivering kick after kick with no seeming end. Ekans and Koffing huddled to a side, trembling. They got their turn soon enough. Team Rocket were piled up, one on top of another, with Oddish standing at the zenith like a little blue conqueror .

"Odd! Odd! Odd! Odd, Dish!"

"What-_ow_-does it-_ouch_-want!" whimpered James. Oddish was jumping up and down on his head.

"It jes keep sayin': apples, apples, apples . . ." Meowth replied, his face swollen from the beating.

"Alright Oddish! If they still won't talk maybe your stun spore will do the trick!" yelled Ashley.

The weed nodded and yellow powder was sprinkled all over the criminals.

"I cant feel my tail!" cried Meowth.

"I can't feel my anything!" shrieked Jessie who was unfortunate enough to be at the very bottom of the pile.

Oddish was still in the midst of battering the already battered Team Rocket when a vine wrapped around its round body and pulled it out of the basket. Gently, Ivysaur handed the weed back to Ashley. "You did great, Oddish." Ashley gave the weed a hug. Oddish looked sad however and glanced up at the basket longingly. "And don't worry, I promise to get you more apples later." That put the weed in a better mood.

"Wow. Just, _wow_. That was . . ." Christian trailed off, at a loss for words.

"Cool? Amazing? Unbelievable?" offered Ashley, smirking.

"No. _Really _weird." Christian smiled. "I guess now it's my turn. Arcanine, you know what to do."

The fire-pokemon nodded in understanding. In two great leaps, it was inside the basket. The paralyzed thieves trembled as Arcanine loomed over them, gazing in distaste. Thankfully for the crooks, the canine's main concerned was the stolen pokemon. With a couple of swipes from its paw, it took down the locks to all five cages. A Sparrow was first to exit, flying out with a very grateful cry before resting atop Arcanine's head. Only after the other four remaining pokemon were safely unloaded by Ivysaur's vine did Arcanine joined the others below.

"S'row!" The bird-pokemon flew over and perched itself on the boy's shoulder, nuzzling its head against his cheek.

Christian laughed. "It's good to see you too buddy."

"So now that we got all the pokemon out, what are we gonna do with _them_?" Ashley titled her head towards the balloon.

"They can't move so they shouldn't be much of a threat now," said Christian. "Arcanine can stand guard while we go fetch the police. Sounds good to you, Arcanine?" The canine nodded.

"I don't think these guys can walk very well yet," said Ashley, picking up a tired looking Tangela.

"It must be those cages. Being trapped for a couple of days caused their muscles to stiffen. Come on we gotta carry them."

Christian scooped a Bellsprout and a Metapod in each of his hands. Ashley already had hers full with Oddish and Tangela so Pikachu decided to chip in, lifting a rather large Catepie with its paws. Seeing the little mouse's struggle, Ivysaur grabbed Pikachu by the tummy with its vine and settled it along with Catepie on its back. As the kids started out with the Pokémon, back in the basket, Meowth was using every bit of his strength to maneuver his hand into James' back pocket where he had his secret plan sorted.

"Got it!" he cried, revealing a remote with only one big red button on it. "Heh. Dose twerps tink dey got da bettah of Team Rocket. Well dey bettah tink again! We worked too hard on dis plan tah be foiled by a coupal of kids!"

"Meowth, I second your frustration but what exactly are you talking about?" sighed James.

"I came prepared jes in case sump'th like dis was tah happen. I planted explosives under da floor boards and wid dis here device I can sent those no-gud twerps flyin' off in tah space!"

"That's really -" James looked uncomfortable.

"- great . . ." continued Jessie. "But won't that sent _us _flying off with them?"

"On da contrary my dear Jess, we'll be safe up here in our balloon. 'Sides you're forgettin' sump'th."

"What?" asked Jessie and James together.

"Take a look at Ekans."

The snake was already up and moving, scraping away flakes of dead skin. "You're right! I forgot that Ekans can get rid of its paralysis," said Jessie.

"Yeap! Now all Ekans gotta do is set da burner on high and we'll be on our way."

"And the twerps will never know what hit them!" snickered James.

"Daaat's right." A paw slammed onto the button. "Bombs away!"

* * *

**To be continued . . .**

**

* * *

**

Author's Note: _Christian_ is a character-of-the-day and belongs to writerfox :)


	9. 8: KaBoom

Chapter 8: Ka-Boom

--

"Excuse me!"

When Officer Jenny saw the young redhead flagging her down from the sidewalk, her first thought was that the girl looked near-hysterical. She was quick to swerve to the side and hit the brakes.

"What seems to be the problem?" she asked hurriedly.

"You have no idea how glad I am to see you! It's my friend. I think she might be missing." Aquamarine eyes pleaded.

"A missing person?" Jenny's eyebrows furrowed. "There haven't been a case like that in decades. Are you sure? Tell me what happened. When was the last time you saw her?"

"Umm, well . . . We were at the park and I went off to get drinks. When I came back she and her pokemon were gone."

"Now don't panic. Have you tried waiting for her to come back?"

"I did. I waited for her for almost an hour. Also, I found her backpack left behind and I know she wouldn't just leave it if something hadn't happen."

"Hmm . . . " Officer Jenny frowned thoughtfully. "Are you two from around here?"

"No. We're just passing through. My friend's from Pallet and I'm from Cerulean."

"Well then. That must be it. I'm sure your friend just gone off somewhere and lost her way." The officer offered Misty a placid smile. "It's easy to get lost when you don't know where you're going."

"I know but . . . " Misty bit her lower lip. Something told her this wasn't the case.

"C'mon." Jenny held out a spare helmet and gestured for Misty to climb onto the cop bike. "We can look for your friend together. We'll cover more ground this way."

Misty really didn't have anything to lose so she adjusted both her and Ashley's bags on her shoulders and hopped on. Officer Jenny had just revved the engine to life when the explosion happened. The blast was deafening, and then a gust of hot air blew through the city. The buildings around them shook from the impact.

"What in the world!" yelled Officer Jenny.

The next second, Misty found herself hanging onto dear life as the policewoman sped towards the column of smoke.

"Sorry!" She heard Officer Jenny say over the roaring wind. "Your friend is gonna have to wait! Now hold on tight!"

As if she wasn't already going fast enough, Jenny shifted into full speed, swerving past any cars, trunks and pedestrians in the way like a madwoman. Misty swore her life shortened with each near-miss. She just hoped she'll live long enough to strangle Ashley once she finds her.

* * *

Meowth remembered that the trap had a five second mechanism to it. The good news was that those five seconds were just what they needed to escape. The bad news (for them) was that the kids below were able to perceive the sinister _tik-tok tik-tok_ before the actual _boom_.

_00:05._

"What's that noise?" asked Ashley.

-

"Ekans, _hurry_!" hissed Jessie as the pokemon used its tail to fiddle with the burner's knob.

_00:04._

"Oh no." Christian went pale. "RUN!"

-

"It's clockwise you stupid snake!"

_00:03._

Arcanine swoop down. Christian and Ivysaur jumped onto its back with the pokemon in tow. He reached out a hand to Ashley.

-

"CLOCKWISE! TURN IT CLOCKWISE!"

_00:02._

Ashley and Pikachu got on.

-

"More gas! Give it more gas!!" James shrieked. The flame burst into its full height, before going out with a miserable '_puutt_'. "Uh oh . . . "

_00:01._

They (all) weren't going to make it.

_00:00_ . . .

_KA-BOOM_.

* * *

Misty could only watch in horror as the fire raged uncontrollably. What was left of the building was scattered a mile around. Firemen and their water pokemon fought hard to douse the flames as the police squad kept civilians and camera crews from coming closer. She would have jumped in and help if it wasn't for Officer Jenny's stern command to wait by the bike, safely away from the heat. And even _there _Misty still had sweat pouring down her back.

"What could have caused this," she muttered to herself.

Suddenly, there was a howl.

The police growlithes begun yelping in agitated unison. Misty followed their gazes, only to see an orange blur disappearing over a wired fence a couple hundred feet away. She blinked, wondering if it was just her imagination. The growlithes quieted down as abruptly as they started.

Then a siren came into range. An ambulance arrived on the scene.

An ambulance? That got the crowd buzzing. If there were medics, then there must be casualties. The question was: who, how many and how bad?

Misty felt her throat go dry. There were always those stretchers with a white cloth over them in movies or even the news but that was all they were, just stuff on TV. But now, it was real. _This _was real. Those poor people.

"Misty?"

Officer Jenny was behind her. The redhead jumped.

"Whoa there. Are you alright?"

Misty could only nod.

"I want to apologize for dragging you down here. So I made a call to the station and I got someone who'll pick you up. He'll help you find your friend. I know I promise to help you find her myself but as you can see . . . Is something wrong, Misty? You look very pale. Do you need me to get the paramedics?"

"No!" cried Misty. "I-I'm fine."

"Alright then."

"Of-Officer Jenny?"

"What is it, Misty? It's alright. You can tell me."

"The ambulance . . . Is it 'cause . . . Has anyone been . . . you know?"

"What? Oh no, no! No, it's just standard procedure. This building had been a warehouse that was closed down a long time ago. I doubt anyone would be in a place like this. We're thinking that the explosion must have been caused by faulty wires from back then. You don't have to worry."

That set Misty at ease for awhile. But only a_while_. For a few moments later, Jenny and the redhead watched as medics rushed by them, led by a fellow officer.

"This way! They're over here!" shouted the man.

"Ronald! What's going on?" demanded Jenny.

The officer stopped but the medics continued rushing by on their way. They had stretchers with them.

"We found some strays," replied Ronald. "Two kids and a couple of pokemon."

"What! Status?"

"Unconscious but alive. Barely."

"Christ. Let's go then. Misty, you stay here."

Despite the heat, Misty had turned cold at the news. She saw no reason to argue against Jenny's order. She was definitely not going anywhere.

On the other hand, she didn't have to wait long either.

"Oof! Stop it will you - for Gyarados' sake I am FINE! No don't you _dare _bring that thing _near _me!"

That voice was more than familiar. Misty perked up and saw a tiny brunette struggling against two medics who seemed adamant to strap an oxygen mask on her. The girl was black, bruised and covered in soot but otherwise as frisky as a magikarp on land.

"Ashley!" Misty cried out, rushing over.

The girl stopped struggling. "Misty?"

"Until you explain yourself you are dead, Ashley Ketchum! You hear me? _DEAD_!"

All of a sudden, Ashley had a feeling that she'd be needing that oxygen mask soon.

* * *

After much persuasion from the kids, Officer Jenny agreed that the pokemon were the ones that needed the most medical attention. Misty rode with them in the ambulance on the way to the Center while Ashley and Christian waited for the police car to arrive that would take them down to the station. After an hour long interrogation about the incident, the kids were finally allowed to shower and change in the police's locker rooms before Officer Jenny herself drove them to collect their pokemon.

Just when Ashley thought she could relax at last, Misty decided that an explanation was long overdue.

The redhead was waiting impatiently in the lounge (the pokemons had yet to be discharged) when the trio showed up. Ashley sighed. The look on Misty's face told her that she was going to have to rely the story all over again.

". . . and then, there was this burst of speed. What was it called again?"

"Extremespeed," replied Christian, sounding as though he could fall asleep at any moment.

"Yeah, that. So Arcanine, using his extremespeed attack, was what saved us. We were just out of the warehouse when the whole thing blew up into smithereens."

"So what happened to Team Rocket?" asked Misty, completely absorbed.

"Dunno. They were still paralyzed in the balloon when the bomb went off. I don't think they could have escaped in time." Ashley frowned. "Though I do remember hearing some weird yelling sounds blasting off somewhere in the middle of everything. I dunno. Maybe it's just my imagination."

Misty looked rather blue. "I can't believe I missed out on that! It sounds so exciting."

Ashley just threw an incredulous look at her friend when Officer Jenny stepped into the room. She looked relieved about something.

"Good news. I just got off the phone with a colleague and he told me that they finally got the fire down," she announced. "Also, they found evidence to pinpoint this as another one of Team Rocket's doing. Not to mention that this means a new lead to a possible hideout."

"That's great," said Christian.

"And, as a reward for your bravery, how about an all-you-can-eat on me? I know this great place down the road."

"Double great!" chirped in Misty. "I'm starving."

"Not so fast," interjected Ashley. "What about our pokemon? It's been hours and still no word on any of them. I'm not going anywhere until I know they're alright."

"Don't worry. Nurse Joy assured me that they're fine. Though about that _Gluphorica _herb. . . Really nasty stuff, even for Team Rocket." Jenny sighed. "I just hope the press won't hear about this. The police got enough on their plate as it is, what with searching out the trainers of the stolen pokemon and explaining to the Mayor about how we let kidnappers use our city as their refuge place. So much for Viridian's pristine reputation. We certainly don't need tabloids or fake articles to make things messier."

"Too late for that." Christian lifted the blinds to show a small group of reporters gathered outside the Center.

Another sigh from Jenny. "Oh well. As long as they're not allowed in, we're fine. The pokemon will be out soon. Anyone up for a backstage exit?"

* * *

By the end of the day, all three kids had to admit that some officers, take Jenny for example, were pretty darn cool. Not only did she treat them to lunch, but also a trip around the city and even an early dinner. The sun had almost completely set by the time they reached the outside borders of Viridian Forest, again, courtesy of a car ride from Officer Jenny. Everything around them was painted in sunset coloring of oranges, pinks and auburns.

"Well, this is far as I go." Jenny said as they got off. "This should save you kids a day worth of traveling. The forest can be pretty rough sometimes, especially at night. From here, it'll take you an hour or so to reach Pewter. If you're lucky, you'll get there before dark. Just follow the signs and keep heading north. Once there, I recommend you stay put 'til morning. You got that? Funny characters come out at night."

"Got it. Thanks so much again, Officer Jenny," said Misty.

"Yeah, you've been a great help." Christian put in.

"No problem. You've kids helped us out plenty as well. Take care now. And be careful on the roads." With that, Jenny turned the car around and sped back towards the city.

"She never gives the accelerator a break does she," muttered Christian.

Misty replied, "Nope."

Ashley, who've been quiet the whole ride, looked a little green in the face and she had a hand over her mouth.

"You alright, Ash?"

"Carsick no doubt. We all are."

Ashley couldn't even tell which voice belonged to who anymore. She rushed over to a nearby bush and proceeded to retch her stomach out.

"Eww. At least go behind it, will you?" That was definitely Misty.

"O-Officer Jenny . . . was nice . . . but, her d-driving . . . Never again. _Never_."

"Pika . . . Pi, Pikachu . . . " agreed the mouse wholeheartedly, who was looking rather sick itself atop Ashley's hat.

"Oh please. Try getting on a motorbike with her. Now that's something to be scared about."

Wrong thing to say apparently. Just thinking about it made Ashley throw up the rest of her dinner _and _lunch.

"So much for her free meal," said Christian as he did his best to ignore the disturbing sight. "Anyway, I guess this is it."

"Huh?" Misty spun in his direction. "You mean, you're leaving?"

Christian rubbed the back of his neck, looking rather sheepish. "Yeah. I should have told you guys before. Pewter's not my stop. I'm heading straight for the coast. Got some business to take care of. I didn't want to mention it earlier 'cause it would put off your plan."

"You shouldn't have. Now we're putting _you _off. What sort of business?"

"It's . . . It's something I rather keep to myself. Sorry."

Misty was a naturally nosy person and her usual instinct was to pry, but this time, she felt that it would be better to let this strange boy keep his secrets to himself. She simply nodded. "Alright then."

The boy suddenly averted his eyes to the ground. "Um, I'm not great with goodbyes."

"Then let's not say goodbye. How about, 'til we meet again?" The redhead grinned.

Christian returned it with a small smile of his own. "Yeah. Definitely. It was great getting to know the both of you."

"Likewise."

There was a shuffling of feet. "Well then. See ya, Misty. Um, bye, Ashley. Feel better."

Misty was not so quiet with her farewell. "Til we meet again, Christian! Au revoir! See you! Good luck on your trip!"

Ashley managed a weak wave.

The sunset played off Christian's dark hair and tan leather jacket as he walked back off into Viridian Forest. And that was it. He never looked back.

"Well there goes a funny character if I ever saw one. Guess Officer Jenny was right. They do come out at night. Think we'll really ever meet him again?"

"_We_?" Ashley coughed out. "Don't you think it's time you went off on your own path too?"

"What for? Aren't we having fun? Next stop: Pewter! Man up. Trainers don't puke over nothing. Now lets go, go, go!"

Pulling Ashley by the arm, Misty began marching down the road, humming some awful traveler's tune as she went.

_Looks like Christian isn't the only funny character around_, thought Ashley sullenly.

"How long 'til Pewter again?" Ashley dared to ask.

"Bout an hour. Why?"

"Nothing . . ."

An hour long walk of enduring a girl she could barely stand at times. A girl that was _humming_. Rather loudly. With no signs of taking a break. Ever.

Where's a speed-crazy cop when you need one?

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**To be continued . . .**

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A/N: Hope no one wants to kill me for taking SOOO FRICKIN LONG to update. This chapter's a disappointment but I'm trying to change my writing style. Reviewing my last few chaps I realized my story is boring. Super boring. I seriously don't know how anyone can put themselves through reading that crap. I wouldn't. So now, I'm gonna quicken the pace alot. Less description, more action. That sort of thing. Even though this chap is another bore, I hope to make it different in the next. P.S. next chap has BROCK! Excited? I am!

Thanks for reading :)


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